Scarinci Hollenbeck, LLC, LLCScarinci Hollenbeck, LLC, LLC

Firm Insights

Do Your Human Resources Records Need a Spring Cleaning?

Author: Scarinci Hollenbeck, LLC

Date: April 5, 2016

Key Contacts

Back

As the weather begins to turn warmer, many of us get the itch for a little “spring cleaning.” For small businesses, your efforts should not stop at home. It is also good idea to channel this energy into reviewing, organizing, and purging your human resources records.

Properly maintaining human resources records has several distinct advantages for employers. First, thorough and accurate recordkeeping allows you to quickly find information about your employees, saving both time and money. In addition, it may even assist in shielding you from liability in the event of an employee lawsuit or government audit.

Properly maintaining human resources records has several distinct advantages for employers.

Reviewing: During any HR records audit, it is important to review a cross-section of personnel files to ensure that they comply with applicable state and federal employment laws. While personnel files should include resumes, applications, performance evaluations, and employment contracts and other records, there are also some records that must be retained. Employers are required to keep certain information about employees’ wages and hours, including hours worked, total wages, and deductions.

Updating: It is also important to verify that all of your Human Resources records are up to date. For instance, you should make sure that the file contains documents reflecting any recent promotions, disciplinary actions, raises, performance reviews, etc. In addition, records management procedures should also be updated to comply with any employment law changes. For instance, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act imposes a number of new record keeping obligations on employers.

Organizing: Keeping detailed records is not helpful unless you can easily access them. If you do not have standardized record management policies and procedures, this is a good time to start. For employers, it is important to make sure that documents make it into the correct files. For instance, I-9 forms, investigative documents, and medical records (including Family and Medical Leave Act forms, Leaves of Absence forms, and the Americans with Disabilities Act information) should be maintained separately and not placed in employees’ general personnel files.

Purging: Upon reviewing your personnel files, you may find documents that are outdated or reference employees that are no longer with the company. However, before throwing away any documents, be sure to check any applicable state or federal document retention requirements. For instance, employers are required to preserve at least three years of payroll records, while records on which wage computations are based should be retained for two years.  Please keep in mind that, once you are aware of threatened, anticipated or served litigation, the requirement to preserve evidence (“Litigation Hold”) supersedes standard document destruction practices.

No Aspect of the advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court. Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.

Scarinci Hollenbeck, LLC, LLC

Related Posts

See all
Corporate Consolidation and Antitrust Issues in Mergers post image

Corporate Consolidation and Antitrust Issues in Mergers

Corporate consolidation involves two or more businesses merging to become a single larger entity. The result is often a stronger and more competitive company that can better navigate today’s competitive marketplace. What Is Corporate Consolidation? Corporate consolidation closely resembles a basic merger transaction. The primary difference is that a consolidation creates an entirely new business […]

Author: Dan Brecher

Link to post with title - "Corporate Consolidation and Antitrust Issues in Mergers"
What is Business Law and Why Is it Important? post image

What is Business Law and Why Is it Important?

Business law plays a critical role in nearly every aspect of running a successful enterprise, from negotiating a commercial lease to drafting employee policies to fulfilling corporate disclosure obligations. Understanding what is business law and your legal obligations can help your business run smoothly and build productive relationships with clients, business partners, regulators, and others. […]

Author: Dan Brecher

Link to post with title - "What is Business Law and Why Is it Important?"
Corporate Transactions: Best Practices for Successful Deals post image

Corporate Transactions: Best Practices for Successful Deals

Corporate transactions can have significant implications for a corporation and its stakeholders. For deals to be successful, companies must act strategically to maximize value and minimize risk. It is also important to fully understand the legal and financial ramifications of corporate transactions, both in the near and long term. Understanding Corporate Transactions The term “corporate […]

Author: Dan Brecher

Link to post with title - "Corporate Transactions: Best Practices for Successful Deals"
How to Conduct a Fair and Legal Employee Termination in 2025 post image

How to Conduct a Fair and Legal Employee Termination in 2025

Ongoing economic uncertainty is forcing many companies to make tough decisions, which includes lowering staff levels. The legal landscape on both the state and federal level also continues to evolve, especially with significant changes to the priorities of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) under the Trump Administration. Terminating an employee is one of the […]

Author: Angela A. Turiano

Link to post with title - "How to Conduct a Fair and Legal Employee Termination in 2025"
Admin Dissolution for Annual Report: What You Need to Know post image

Admin Dissolution for Annual Report: What You Need to Know

While filing annual reports may seem like a nuisance, failing to do so can have significant ramifications. These include fines, reputational harm, and interruption of your business operations. In basic terms, “admin dissolution for annual report” means that a company is dissolved by the government. This happens because it failed to submit its annual report […]

Author: Dan Brecher

Link to post with title - "Admin Dissolution for Annual Report: What You Need to Know"
What Is Antitrust Litigation Law? post image

What Is Antitrust Litigation Law?

Antitrust laws are designed to ensure that businesses compete fairly. There are three federal antitrust laws that businesses must navigate. These include the Sherman Act, the Federal Trade Commission Act, and the Clayton Act. States also have their own antitrust regimes. These may vary from federal regulations. Understanding antitrust litigation helps businesses navigate these complex […]

Author: Robert E. Levy

Link to post with title - "What Is Antitrust Litigation Law?"

No Aspect of the advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court. Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.

Sign up to get the latest from our attorneys!

Explore What Matters Most to You.

Consider subscribing to our Firm Insights mailing list by clicking the button below so you can keep up to date with the firm`s latest articles covering various legal topics.

Stay informed and inspired with the latest updates, insights, and events from Scarinci Hollenbeck. Our resource library provides valuable content across a range of categories to keep you connected and ahead of the curve.

Let`s get in touch!

* The use of the Internet or this form for communication with the firm or any individual member of the firm does not establish an attorney-client relationship. Confidential or time-sensitive information should not be sent through this form. By providing a telephone number and submitting this form you are consenting to be contacted by SMS text message. Message & data rates may apply. Message frequency may vary. You can reply STOP to opt-out of further messaging.

Sign up to get the latest from the Scarinci Hollenbeck, LLC attorneys!