diff --git a/db/database.js b/db/database.js
index cba0200..d4fe68b 100755
--- a/db/database.js
+++ b/db/database.js
@@ -20,6 +20,10 @@ if (!cols.includes('negated_at'))          db.exec("ALTER TABLE violations ADD C
 if (!cols.includes('prior_active_points')) db.exec("ALTER TABLE violations ADD COLUMN prior_active_points INTEGER");
 if (!cols.includes('prior_tier_label'))    db.exec("ALTER TABLE violations ADD COLUMN prior_tier_label TEXT");
 
+// Employee notes column (free-text, does not affect scoring)
+const empCols = db.prepare('PRAGMA table_info(employees)').all().map(c => c.name);
+if (!empCols.includes('notes')) db.exec("ALTER TABLE employees ADD COLUMN notes TEXT");
+
 // Ensure resolutions table exists
 db.exec(`CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS violation_resolutions (
     id              INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,