Employee management with digital records

Every employee’s contract, addenda, job description and GDPR documents in a single digital file — always ready for a labour inspection.

Paper personnel files are a constant source of risk: missing documents at a labour inspection, contracts that no longer reflect reality, personal data with no GDPR processing basis. 4mystaff turns employee management into a single digital file per person — employment contract, addenda, job description, diplomas, certificates and GDPR consents, all dated and versioned. When pay, role or working time changes, the new addendum goes into the same file, so the history stays in one place. HR always has a complete file at hand, and employees see their own documents in their own account.

Digital file per employee: contract, addenda, job description, decisions, diplomas, certificates — versioned and dated.
Addenda for changes to pay, role, working time or place of work kept in the file, in date order.
A change history per employee, so you can show when each contract term changed.
Register of GDPR consents and processing bases, with retention policies per document type.
Employee access to their own file: each person downloads their own contract and certificates without asking HR.
Certificates and supporting documents stored in the file, ready to hand over when requested.
Alerts for expiring documents: occupational-health clearance, safety training, residence/work permits.
Structured export of the full file for a labour inspection or audit.

What a complete personnel file contains

EU labour law mandates a minimum set of documents in each employee’s file: the employment contract signed before the first working day, the job description, addenda for any subsequent change, the written statement of the essential terms of employment required by Directive (EU) 2019/1152, the safety training record and occupational-health clearance, plus ID and education documents. 4mystaff structures the file by these categories and flags what is missing for each employee. At a labour inspection, you export the complete file — every document, in order, with its change history — instead of digging through binders.

Addenda kept with the contract, not in a separate binder

Any change to contractual terms (pay, role, working-time length, place of work) must be notified to the employee in writing, as EU rules on transparent working conditions require — in practice an addendum signed by both parties. In 4mystaff the addendum is filed in the employee’s record next to the contract it amends, dated, so the file always shows the current terms. The most common non-conformity found at inspections — the real salary differing from the last signed document — is easy to spot and correct.

GDPR for personnel data: basis, retention, access

Employee data requires a clear processing basis and a retention policy. 4mystaff keeps a register of consents (where consent is the basis) and applies retention rules per document type, in line with the periods the law sets, including archiving the personnel file after termination. Access is controlled by role: a team manager sees only their people and HR sees everything. Sensitive data (medical information from sick leave, for example) carries an extra access restriction.

From hire to termination: the file lifecycle

The digital file covers the whole lifecycle: at hiring you collect documents via an onboarding checklist (IDs, contract signature, safety training, medical clearance); along the way you add addenda, reviews and periodic training records; at termination you add the termination documents, then archive the file with the right retention policy. The full history stays traceable — useful both for labour disputes and for demonstrating compliance at an inspection.

Legal references

Regulation (EU) 2016/679 — GDPR, art. 5–6 (lawfulness, purpose limitation, storage limitation for personnel data)
Directive (EU) 2019/1152 — transparent and predictable working conditions (written information on the employment relationship)
GDPR art. 15 and 17 — employee access to, and erasure of, their own personnel data

Frequently asked questions

What documents must a personnel file contain by law?

At minimum: the employment contract signed before activity starts, the job description, the written statement of the essential terms of employment required by Directive (EU) 2019/1152, addenda for any change, the safety training record, occupational-health clearance and ID/education documents. 4mystaff automatically flags what is missing from each employee’s file.

Is a digital file accepted at a labour inspection?

Yes. The electronic file is valid as long as documents are signed (scanned wet-ink or electronic) and can be made available to inspectors. 4mystaff exports the complete file, ordered by category, with its change history — in the format inspectors request, within minutes.

When must a pay-change addendum be signed?

EU rules require the employee to be informed in writing at the latest on the day the change takes effect, and national law may set stricter terms. In practice, if a raise applies from the 1st of the month, sign the addendum before that date. 4mystaff keeps the signed addendum in the employee’s file next to the contract.

How long must personnel documents be kept?

Retention periods are set by national law and differ by document type; the personnel file is usually kept for several years after the contract ends. 4mystaff applies the retention policy you set per document type.

Can employees access their own documents?

Yes. From their own account, each employee views and downloads their own contract, addenda, income and seniority certificates — without sending requests to HR. Access is strictly limited to their own file.

How does 4mystaff handle sensitive data such as medical records?

Special-category data (for example information from sick leave) has a restricted access level, separate from the general file, visible only to authorised roles, in line with the GDPR principle of need-to-know access.

Related resources

Time & attendance online →Clock in/out from the app or a terminal, the worked-hours report, overtime and exceptions — all in one monthly hours report.Security & access: roles and permissions →Roles and permissions decide who sees what in employee data — each person gets access to what their job requires, in line with GDPR.HR & payroll software (4softhr) →See pricing →

Digitise your personnel files

Add your employees and their documents, organise the file categories and keep everything ready for a labour inspection. Try it free for 6 months, no card.

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