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Personnel Files

Monitoring Your Personnel File Is An Important Way of Protecting Your Job (The APC Advocate, Winter 2002)

A number of Unit 4 employees recently have learned how dangerous it can be not to know what's in your personnel file. Unfortunately, they learned this when they received letters from campus administrators announcing pending disciplinary action—or, in several cases, termination.

In almost every case, the employee had no idea on what evidence the administration was basing its action. Also in almost every case, the evidence had been in the employee's personnel file and could have been challenged and/or rebutted if the employee had known earlier of its existence.This does not mean, of course, that the disciplinary action necessarily could have been precluded. It does mean, though, that the employee would have had a much better idea that something was in the works . . . and may have been able to do something about it.

Article 11 of the APC/CSU Collective Bargaining Agreement details various aspects of Unit 4 employees' personnel files: how they're to be maintained, what may be placed in them and by whom, how and when items may be rebutted or removed, what access to the file must be provided to an employee, and so on. But too few employees familiarize themselves with this article until it becomes necessary; and then, unfortunately, it's often too late.

To complicate matters, many (if not all) CSU campuses routinely maintain multiple files on employees—terming them "working" or "unofficial" or "administrative" files—in addition to the one official personnel file specified in the contract.

APC believes this practice is inappropriate, since an employee's contractual rights regarding her/his personnel file apply only to the one official file, and employees therefore are regularly being denied those rights with regard to information being maintained in the other files.

An arbitration ruling within the last month addressed APC's contention that the University does not have the right to maintain more than one personnel file on an employee. Unfortunately, the arbitrator did not agree with APC's view, and ruled that the University may continue its multiple file practice.

However, the arbitrator did reiterate that the contractual provisions regarding use of personnel file material (such as for disciplinary action) are restricted to material in the official file. So while APC did not prevail in this case, an important clarification was gained.

Therefore, it's more important than ever that every Unit 4 employee monitor regularly and frequently the contents of her/his official personnel file. If you have any questions, please contact your campus steward, who will be more than willing to assist you.

Questions? Concerns?

If you have any questions or concerns about this Alert!, please contact your campus steward (for information on how to contact APC, click here).

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