Provide a recommendation for a former employee
Provide a reference for someone you know
Help your employees prove their employment status
Evaluate performance of employees
Warn an employee about unacceptable conduct
Check references for a potential employee
Document the details of an injury in the workplace
Keep track of employee information in one place
Document the terms of an employee's departure
Maintain personnel files FAQs
In an employee personnel file, you'll want to keep basic details such as contact information, employment status, emergency contacts information, job applications and employment offer. You'll want to create a schedule for periodically updating employee information.
You may hear different answers to this question. To cover every contingency, you'd keep records for six years. The minimum amount of time you need to keep personnel or hiring records is one year; however, that does not cover every situation. While keeping records longer may be cumbersome or seem tedious, it may be prudent in some cases. Keep in mind that for the most part, keeping the records may help protect your company.
How long to keep personnel records in regards to labor laws:
One year: U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
Three years: Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
Six Years: Health and pension benefits, COBRA information
Medical records must be kept secure. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires that medical files must be securely stored separately from regular personnel files. The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) also require that medical and genetic information to be stored separately.