HR filing system ideas come down to four decisions, and a small employer who makes them once never rebuilds the system. One file per person, keyed by employee ID rather than name. Documents in date order, so the file reads as a story. Sensitive forms, tax and medical, kept apart with narrower access. A retention rule applied on exit. And the documents printed from templates that carry the ID and the date, so the file starts complete. The onboarding checklist on this site assigns the ID and lists the documents, free and without an account.
One file, by ID
The employee ID on every document at issue, and the file keyed by it, so a name change or a namesake cannot mix two records. The checklist on this site assigns the ID as its first line; the contract tool, the handbook template and the review template carry it.
In date order
Contract, acknowledgment, forms, onboarding, reviews, write-ups, changes, exit. The order is the evidence: the plan preceded the letter, the acknowledgment preceded the write-up that cited it. A file in date order needs no index; a file by document type needs one and never has it.
Sensitive forms apart
Tax forms, eligibility verification and anything medical in a separate section with access limited to who needs it. The general file is the manager's; the sensitive one is the owner's or payroll's. A digital system applies the split by access rule; a cabinet applies it by a second drawer with a second key.
The retention rule
Set per document type, applied on the anniversary of exit, and recorded when applied. A digital system does this on a rule; a cabinet does it when someone remembers. From the vendors' own pricing pages, cited below: Homebase lists its Essentials plan at $30 per location per month billed monthly or $24 billed annually, with unlimited employees, and a Basic plan at $0 for one location with up to 10 employees; BambooHR starts at $10 per employee per month for Core and $17 for Pro; Deputy's Core plan is $6.50 per user per month. HeadcountDesk Pro is $24 per month per location.
Questions people ask about HR filing system ideas
Paper or digital?
Digital, for the date lock and the retention rule; paper works until the first document is edited after signing.
Who should have access to the files?
The owner; the manager for their people; the employee for their own; payroll for the sensitive section.
Is the checklist free?
Yes, without an account.