Do I have the right to have access to my personnel files?
Yes. Employees have access to certain parts of their personnel files. The Iowa Legislature passed a law establishing this right in 1990. The statute is very short and states:
91B.1 Files -- Access by employees.
An employee, as defined in section 91A.2 of the Iowa Code, shall have access to and shall be permitted to obtain a copy of the employee's personnel file maintained by the employee's employer, as defined in section 91A.2, including but not limited to performance evaluations, disciplinary records, and other information concerning employer-employee relations. However, an employee's access to a personnel file is subject to all of the following:
• The employer and employee shall agree on the time the employee may have access to the employee's personnel file, and a representative of the employer may be present.
• An employee shall not have access to employment references written for the employee.
• An employer may charge a reasonable fee for each page of a copy made by the employer for an employee of an item in the employee's personnel file. For purposes of this subsection, "reasonable fee" means an amount equivalent to an amount charged per page for copies made by a commercial copying business.
