An employee database is the authoritative answer to who works here, and its value comes from being trusted rather than from being comprehensive. The decisions worth making at the outset are what belongs in it, who may see each part, and how long each category is kept.
What belongs in the core record
Identity, contract terms, reporting line, location, start date, and the documents that prove eligibility to work. This is the set every other system needs and the set that must be correct. Keep it small and authoritative rather than large and approximate, because a record people do not trust gets duplicated in spreadsheets within months.
What needs separating
Health information, absence reasons, case files and occupational health reports need a narrower audience than the core record. Products that hold everything at one permission level force a choice between people who cannot do their jobs and people who can read far more than they should. Test this before buying rather than after.
Retention by category
Different categories are kept for different periods, and keeping everything forever is neither compliant nor helpful. Decide the periods, make the system apply them, and be able to show that it did. Leavers are where this bites: their record must persist for some purposes and not for others, and the product should express that.
Questions people ask about employee database
Should salary sit in the employee database?
Usually yes with tight permissions, because reporting needs it. What matters is that visibility is a short list rather than a default.
How long do we keep leaver records?
By category, driven by tax, employment and claim limitation periods. Set it deliberately rather than keeping everything.
Can employees correct their own data?
They can request correction and self service for basic details reduces errors. Contractual terms should change through a controlled process.