California Employers: personnel records access/recordkeeping obligations are newly expanded!

California employers were already required to provide current and former employees with access to personnel records relating to their performance or to any grievance concerning the employee.

Under SB 513, which was recently signed into law, this obligation has been expanded to specifically include education and training records in personnel records that have to be provided.

The law also requires an employer who maintains education and training records to ensure those records specifically include the following:

  1. the employee’s name,
  2. the training provider’s name,
  3. the date/duration of the training,
  4. the core competencies of a training, including skills in equipment or software, and
  5. the resulting certification or qualification.

California employers should ensure their employee training records are updated to include the required information (which must be kept for at least 3 years), and that they provide access to such files when a current or former employee makes a personnel records access request.

Bill Text – SB-513 Personnel records.