Legal Question in Employment Law in New York

HR records from former employer
Hi. I was recently laid off of my job which I held for more than 5 years. Everyone was saitisfied with my performance except for my boss, whom usually knew less than I did (we've all been there before I am sure). I was wondering if I am allowed to request my personal HR records to see if he ever lied about my performance. It is a privately held company based in New York. Thank you

Asked on 7/15/09, 9:52 am

2 Answers from Attorneys

Randall Brett Law Office of Randall P. Brett

0 users found helpful

0 attorneys agreed

Re: HR records from former employer

You can request to review your own HR records during business hours at your former employer's place of business. If you find any factually incorrect information in the file, you can request to have it corrected and/or removed from your file. Factually incorrect means that the information is wrong, not that you disagree with it. Your supervisor's evaluation of your performance, however, is not subject to change or removal based on your request. You can request that the employer allow you to make a rebuttal statement which will be inserted into your file, but the employer is not obligated to allow this. On the other hand, if you find that the file contains information that leads you to believe that the decision to lay you off (or take any other action that adversely affected your employment) was based on your age, race, religion, gender, a disability, or other characteristic protected by federal or New York law, you can file a complaint with the EEOC and the New York Division of Human Rights, or take legal action on your own. Please feel free to contact my office to arrange an appointment if you would like to discuss your matter further.

Answered on 7/15/09, 10:50 am

Mark as helpful