Are employers required to give employees access to their personnel files?
• California: All private employers must allow employees access to certain portions of their personnel files, including records used to determine qualifications for employment, promotion, additional compensation, and termination and other disciplinary action. Employees are not entitled to access letters of reference and records relating to an investigation of a possible criminal offense. • Illinois: On written request, employers must grant employees access to certain portions of their personnel files, including records used to determine qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation, or discharge or other disciplinary action. Employees are not entitled to access letters of reference, test documents, staff planning records, personal information about third parties if disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of privacy, records relating to a claim between the employee and employer that may be discovered in a judicial proceeding, or records r
