WIN AT WORK MONTHLY

Win at Work

Employee Rights Update

DIRT

NEW EMPLOYEE FILE RIGHTS

In employment disputes, it is not unusual for the opponents to throw "dirt" or unflattering allegations back and forth.

Some people accuse dirt throwers of blackmail—threats to use private information to their civil advantage—and that can sometimes be an accurate characterization.

However, it is usually morally and legally appropriate to disclose such information. If the parties are sincere about settlement, they should both put all issues on the table. Unsavory facts about an employer are relevant if they reveal a pattern of conduct or were the subject of prior complaints that got you fired. There is even a legal "privilege" to reveal dirt when it is part of discussions prior to intended litigation, even though your opponent might object and call it slanderous.

Use dirt appropriately. The threat of hanging dirty laundry out in public can be very motivating, especially if it avoids litigation.

Now, mud-slingers are a different story...

Employees now have rights to request that any portion of their personnel file be corrected, deleted, or both.

According to a recent revision of the California Labor Code, such requests should be made in writing, including the reasons for the request. This written statement then becomes part of the file.

The employer is then required to either grant the employee’s request or inform the employee of the decision to deny the request within 30 days from the date received. Any refusal by the employer must include reasons and also become part of the file.

Employers must remove adverse material from the personnel file of an employee if it has not been used as part of an official act of discipline of the employee within two years of discovery.

Also, a former law excepting public employees from this provision has been removed.

The law will continue to require employers to allow employees to inspect their personnel files at reasonable times.