Personnel Records

I am writing to update the excellent advice on the RAQ page from November 2020 in regards to the retention of health screening records in a school district, local government, or state agency (under a separate retention schedule.)

First: thank you very much for your kind words and feedback.  Both are very appreciated, and I encourage users of the service to keep a dialogue going--the service is only as good as the questions and input that inspire it.

The public libraries in our region have been requiring staff to complete a health self-assessment every day that they report to the building to work. Some of these libraries now have a collection of paper or electronic responses that date back to June.

How long should these records be kept? Two weeks? Two months? Forever?

Records management is an art formed by the crossroads of life, law, and data.[1]

The library is using NYS Archives and Civil Service references to set personnel and payroll files records retention and disposition.

A question arose regarding employee rights to request removal of materials from personnel records.

There are a lot of little details to address in considering this question, but first, there is one big principle I must emphasize. When it comes to records retention—and especially when it comes to employee-related records—nothing should be discretionary.