Federal & State Regulations | Recordkeeping - Tennessee

State Info

Summary of differences between federal and state regulations

Federal

The federal Fair Labor Standards Act does not require employers to allow employees access to their personnel files. This access is generally a matter of agreement between an employer and an employee (or the employee’s representative). However, while federal law does not, some state laws require employers to allow employees access to their files. Employers need to comply with the state laws.

Federal OSHA requires that employers must allow employees and their designated representatives to inspect and/or copy records pertaining to exposure to hazardous substances. Access must be provided in a reasonable time, place, and manner. Access must be provided within 15 days working days. No costs may be incurred for the first provision, but subsequent provisions may be charged reasonable, nondiscriminatory administrative costs.

Employees and former employees must be guaranteed access to their individual OSHA 301 forms. Employee representatives will be provided access to the “information about the case” section of the OSHA 301 form in establishments where they represent employees.

The federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requires employers to allow employees to inspect and/or obtain a copy of any of their own protected health information that is used to make decisions about them. Employers must provide access within 30 days of receiving a request if the information is maintained or accessible onsite. If not, employers have 60 days to act. Employers must arrange for a mutually convenient time and place for employee access. Employers may charge reasonable, cost-based fees for copying information, but not for retrieving or handling the information or processing a request.

State

Records to be kept on file
Wage and Hour/Payroll	Payroll To comply with unemployment compensation law, employers must maintain payroll records for seven years. These records must show: The period covered by the payroll, Place of employment within the state, and Scheduled hours per day or week. Additionally, records must be kept on each individual employee showing: Social Security number and name; Date hired, rehired, and terminated; Full-time weekly wage; The number of hours for which he was paid (except for workers paid on salary); Gross wages in each pay period and total wages for all pay periods in a calendar quarter; Value of any remuneration other than cash; and Any special payments (bonuses, gifts, prizes, etc.). TN Code §50-7-701, TN Rule 0800-10-03-.10 Tennessee Unemployment Insurance Handbook for Employers: Record Keeping and Audits
	Public contractors' records Contractors on state construction projects must keep payroll records for one year following completion of the project. TN Code §12-4-411
Accessible Records	MSDSs Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) shall be readily available, upon request, for review by employees or their designated representatives. If an MSDS for a hazardous chemical is not readily available, an employee, designated representative, or a collective bargaining agent for the employees may submit a written request for the MSDS to the employer. The employer must then furnish a copy of the MSDS to the requestor within three business days from receiving the request. If the requested MSDS is not in the employer's possession, the employer must, within three business days of receiving the request, demonstrate that an effort has been made to obtain the MSDS. If, at the end of a two-week period, the employer is still unable to obtain the requested MSDS, the employee shall not be required to work with the hazardous chemical, unless the employer can demonstrate to the employee that the MSDS will be forthcoming by a date specified by the employer or that the information cannot be obtained through no fault of the employer. TN Code §50-3-2008
	State employees State employees are entitled to access their personnel files at any “reasonable time.” The employee may request copies of any material in the files. The employee must pay for the cost of the reproduction of any files. TN Code §8-50-108
	Public employees Public employees' personnel records are considered public records and may be inspected, extracted, or copied by any citizen of Tennessee during normal business hours. TN Code §10-7-503
Inaccessible Records	Certain information that may be contained in a personnel record is not considered public. This includes: Unpublished telephone numbers; Bank account information; Social Security numbers; Driver license information, except when driving or operating a vehicle is part of the employee's job description or job duties or incidental to the performance of their job; and The same information of immediate family members or household members. This confidential information must be redacted wherever possible. However, public employers cannot use this provision to limit or deny access to otherwise public information because a file contains confidential information. TN Code §10-7-504