In and Ky stand on employee files

splendid splinter

Do In. and Ky. laws state that an employee, current or past, has the right by law to see or receive copies of information contained in the employee's personnel file? We have a terminated employee who wants copies of records in his personnel file and information from a manager's computer concerning him.

LindaS

Not sure what your state regs. are but there is NO WAY I would give an employee notes that were maintained on my computer. In WI we are required to either provide a former or current employee an opportunity to VIEW their personnel file, or create a copy of it (based on the written request) within 7 working days of receiving the request but I would only go that far. If it is not in their file, they will not receive a copy of it. I have many files on employees where I keep notes on certain things to refer back to in the event of a discipline action, etc. but I do not include this information in what I give the employee.

Bizee1

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 06-04-03 AT 04:25PM (CST)[/font][p]"...information from a manager's computer concerning him."
NO

As for the ee's rights regarding viewing the contents of their personnel file, this is state-specific. In Indiana, if you are a public er, then YES, the ee, current or termed, has the right to view the contents, to include documentation that specifies why the person was termed.

In Kentucky, the ee can also view their file (public employers). The only thing the er can keep from letting the ee view are those documents relating to an ongoing criminal or administrative investigation and employment examination materials.

For private employers, both states have no laws on access to personnel files, therefore, it's up to the er.

Don D

Nor should you comment one way or the other regarding things that may or may not be on a company computer. Dismiss that part of the request out of hand and have no dialog about it. If something serious develops down the road, his/her attorney can always have such things subpoenaed. But, I would never tell a requestor, "You'll have to subpoena it."