ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WHEC) — New York workers will soon have the right to see what their employers have written about them in their personnel files.
An opportunity to see what’s being said
Baron Van Buren of Fairport said he would definitely look at his personnel file if given the chance. “I think everyone deserves an opportunity to see what’s being said about them on a professional level because things on a personal level can affect you professionally,” Van Buren said.
Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a law in September that gives every worker in New York the right to request their personnel file, and employers must provide it within five days. The law goes into effect November 8.
A black box
Jared Cook, a lawyer at Tully Rinckey, said, “It could just be curiosity. People just want to see what’s in there.” Cook said, “It’s sort of a black box.” He said, “And if that’s used to make decisions that affect you the idea is that you should have a right to know what that is. Because if there’s something in there you want to correct then you can say – hey I want to correct that.”
Emily Austin said, “I have always wanted to see my personnel file, yes.” Austin believes bad information in her file led to her being fired and wants to check if the file matches her records. When asked if she thought there was inaccurate information that negatively affected her, Austin said, “Absolutely.”
More notice about negativity
Van Buren said, “It’s an avenue to defend yourself as well when no one else will.” If workers find something in their file they dispute, the law protects them from retaliation. Employers must also notify workers within 10 days if they add something negative to their file.
Employees can request files from former employers, but the law only requires employers to keep those files for three years after a worker leaves.
New York joins more than 30 other states that allow private and public employees some access to their personnel files, including California, Illinois and Pennsylvania. Some states, like Texas and Georgia, only allow public employees this access.
