California Expands Employee Access to Personnel Records, by Katherine S. Catlos, Esq.,1-22-26

Important amendments to California Labor Code section 1198.5 took effect on January 1, 2026, pursuant to Senate Bill 513. These changes expand employee rights and clarify employer obligations regarding access to personnel records.

Background: Existing Law

Under current law, employees and former employees have the right to inspect and receive copies of personnel records relating to their performance or to any grievance concerning them. Employers are required to make these records available for inspection, and failure to comply constitutes a criminal offense.

Key Changes Under Senate Bill 513

Expanded Definition of Personnel Records

The amended statute broadens the definition of personnel records related to an employee’s performance to include education and training records. Employers that maintain such records must ensure they include specific information such as:

• Employee name
• Name of the training provider
• Date and duration of the training
• Core competencies covered by the training
• Any certification or qualification obtained as a result

Why did the Legislature include training materials?

For SB 513, the public policy was to make sure workers can actually prove what training and education they received on the job, especially safety‑related training in high‑risk industries like refineries. The idea is that if an employee is laid off or changes jobs, they can obtain documentation of their training and use it to show qualifications, certifications, and safety competencies to future employers or in litigation.

The bill was sponsored by United Steelworkers with an eye toward oil refinery workers and their documented safety training, but the language sweeps more broadly. Legislators were contemplating training such as:

Statutorily required safety training (e.g., Cal/OSHA‑mandated programs, hazard communication, refinery safety, construction/tunneling safety meetings if deemed “training”).

Legally required workplace trainings like sexual harassment prevention and workplace violence prevention.

Employer‑provided or employer‑sponsored skills training, including equipment and software training that leads to some certification or qualification.

In short, the policy goal was transparency and portability of employees’ training records, so workers can inspect and copy them just like other performance‑related personnel records and use them to prove both their qualifications and whether employers actually provided the training they claim to have provided.

Inspection and Copying Rights

According to the amended California Labor Section 1198.5, every current and former employee, or their authorized representative, has the right to inspect and receive copies of personnel records.

Employers must:

• Make records available within 30 calendar days of receiving a written request
• Extend the deadline only if both parties agree in writing, and in no event beyond 35 calendar days
• Provide copies upon written request at a charge not exceeding the actual cost of reproduction, within the same timeframe

Employers are not required to make records available during times when the employee is required to render service.

Record Retention

Employers must retain personnel records for at least three years following termination of employment.

Location and Manner of Inspection

• Current employees: Records must be made available at the employee’s workplace or another mutually agreed-upon location.
• Former employees: If termination resulted from a violation of law or an employment-related policy involving harassment or workplace violence, employers may comply by:
  • Making records available at a location within reasonable driving distance, or
  • Mailing copies of the records

Employers are required to comply with only one request per year from a former employee.

Verification, Redactions, and Exemptions

Employers may take reasonable steps to verify the identity of the requesting party and may redact the names of nonsupervisory employees before inspection or copying.

The statute continues to exempt certain records, including:

• Records related to investigations of possible criminal offenses
• Letters of reference
• Records obtained prior to employment
• Records prepared by identifiable examination committee members

Penalties and Enforcement

Failure to comply with the inspection or copying requirements within the statutory timeframes may result in a $750 penalty, recoverable by the employee, former employee, or the Labor Commissioner. Employees may also seek injunctive relief and recover costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees.

Litigation Exception

An employee’s or former employee’s right to inspect or copy personnel records ceases during the pendency of a lawsuit relating to a personnel matter.

Author: Katherine S. Catlos, is a Partner in Kaufman Dolowich’s San Francisco office