What is an employment record?

Still hunting through metal cabinets for last year’s appraisal forms? A modern document management system (DMS) such as Folderit brings every employment record into one encrypted, searchable library. HR retrieves any file in seconds, auditors see automatic trails, and retention rules run themselves—no spreadsheets, no panic.

Key takeaways—catch these first

• Employment records span the entire employee life-cycle, from application to exit interview; a DMS keeps every version under one metadata profile.
• Folderit automates GDPR, FLSA and other labour-law duties with built-in versioning, granular permissions and retention schedules.
• HR teams save up to 10 hours a week once paper searches vanish.
• Centralising records slashes compliance risk—the leading cause of HR fines.

What exactly is an employment record?

Every document that tracks an employee’s relationship with your organisation—contract, payslip, training log, medical certificate, disciplinary letter—forms the employment record.

Why go digital in 2025?

Hybrid work demands instant, secure access. Regulators now expect full change history. SHRM warns that mishandled data invites fines and reputational harm.

How does Folderit manage the record life-cycle?

1. Capture & tag – Scan or ingest e-mails; metadata templates prompt for staff ID and doc type.
2. Version snapshots – Every save creates a read-only copy; nothing overwrites.
3. Role-based access – Payroll sees payslips, managers see reviews, HR sees all.
4. Workflows – Onboarding packets route for e-signature, then file themselves.
5. Retention clocks – Policies delete or archive on schedule and log the event.

How long must we keep records?

• UK: Basic HR data six years for GDPR and claim limits.
• UK best practice: Many keep seven to cover tax queries.
• US: FLSA payroll data at least three years.

Folderit lets you assign different clocks to each document class.

What everyday gains will staff notice?

Search in seconds, audit trails in one click, employee self-service downloads and automated onboarding. Case studies show centralised HR files cut missing-document rates by 30 percent. (hyland.com, accesscorp.com)

Must-have DMS features for HR

End-to-end encryption, MFA, unlimited versions, metadata templates, retention automation, e-signatures and audit-ready reports—delivered natively by Folderit.

Handling sensitive files

Store medical or disciplinary notes in sub-folders with separate keys; every view is logged—aligns with GDPR special-category data rules.

Legal admissibility of digital copies

Tamper-evident hashes and complete logs meet court standards and often out-rank paper evidence.

Proving ROI

Time: up to 10 hours/week reclaimed per HR team.
Risk: GDPR fines avoided.
Space and morale: cabinets disappear, requests self-service. HR Daily Advisor found 42 % of departments spend up to a quarter of their week on file management—digitisation slashes that overhead. (hrdailyadvisor.com)

Myths busted

“Scanning voids originals”—digital copies are court-approved with a trusted conversion chain.
“Cloud is risky”—ISO 27001 DMS vendors encrypt every byte.
“Retention is too complex”—Folderit ships templates for major jurisdictions.
“Versions bloat storage”—incremental storage keeps only changes.

Quick-start checklist

• Build an HR-IT team
• Map document types and legal clocks
• Pick Folderit cloud, on-prem or hybrid
• Scan active files first
• Configure metadata and roles
• Enable onboarding workflows
• Train managers on self-service
• Audit retention quarterly

Final thoughts

Employment records are the heartbeat of your organisation. Managed casually, they invite fines and frustration. Managed in Folderit, they deliver instant search, airtight compliance and calm HR teams. Version control, retention scheduling and encryption work silently so people can focus on hiring, developing and supporting talent—not shuffling paper.