Keeping track of employee documentation can be tedious for employers, but it's a necessary step and can be especially helpful in a variety of situations. Various federal and state laws require employers to keep and maintain certain employee records, and if there is an employee-related issue, information in a personnel file may help establish an employer’s claim or defense in employment litigation.

But the big question is: what kind of documentation should employers file away? In comes our personnel file checklist. Below is our recommendation for what documents you should keep in personnel files and those you should keep separately.

As an update to our previous blog post on the Department of Labor’s (DOL) rule on independent contractor classifications, the DOL’s final rule (“Final Rule”) is officially in effect as of March 11, 2024.

As a reminder, the Final Rule repeals the 2021 “core factors” test and looks at the “totality of the circumstances” of six economic realities factors to determine whether a worker is classified as an employee or an independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Employers should carefully analyze independent contractor/employee classifications, and update their classification policies and any independent contractor agreements accordingly.

For a full understanding of employer’s obligations under the Final Rule, view our previous blog post.

Employers are quick to classify workers as independent contractors because independent contractors are not entitled to the benefits and protections afforded to employees (such as wage and hour laws, overtime pay, worker’s compensation insurance, employment taxes, employee benefits). However, there are rules employers must follow to ensure workers are classified correctly.

The most recent rule on independent contractor classification was published on January 10, 2024 by the Department of Labor (DOL) (the “Final Rule”). The Final Rule repeals the 2021 “core factors” test and becomes effective on March 11, 2024.

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has adopted a new rule expanding the injury and illness reporting requirement for employers. 

Effective January 1, 2024, more employers will be required to electronically submit workplace injury and illness information to OSHA as follows:

• Worksites with 100 or more employees in certain high-risk industries must electronically submit information from their OSHA Forms 300 and 301 to OSHA once a year.
• Worksites with 250 or more employees that are subject to OSHA's record-keeping regulation will continue to be required to submit information from their OSHA 300A form to OSHA annually.
• Worksites with 20 to 249 employees in certain high-risk industries will continue to be required to submit information from their OSHA 300A form to OSHA annually.

Certain industries are exempt from submitting workplace injury and illness information to OSHA unless they are asked in writing to do so by OSHA, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), or a state agency operating under the authority of OSHA or the BLS.

All data must be submitted annually for the previous calendar year by March 2nd of the following year.  When submitting data, employers should not include personal identifiable information of employees on the reporting such as: names, social security numbers, telephone numbers, home addresses, email addresses, healthcare provider information, or family member information.

• Data can be submitted electronically here.
• Aids to assist in the reporting process can be found here. 

As a general reminder, OSHA already requires employers to keep records of work-related injuries and illnesses that resulted in death, loss of consciousness, medical treatment beyond first aid, days away from work, restricted work or transfer to another job. Additionally, all employers must report to OSHA any workplace incident that results in a fatality, in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye as further described here.

Employers must still complete the OSHA 300, 301 and 300A forms based on these records.