Personnel File Privacy Policy
Unit: Human Resources
Contact: Susan Norton
Title: Senior Associate Vice President for Human Resources and Chief Human Resources Officer
Effective Date: 8/3/2001
Revision Date: 11/12/2018
Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to set guidelines for the maintenance and accuracy of the official personnel files for employees of The University of Alabama and to preserve the privacy of those records. This policy replaces the former Personnel File Privacy which was effective 4/15/2002.
Policy
It is the policy of The University of Alabama to maintain a personnel file containing pertinent employee information about each employee. Employee files are confidential and are to be treated as such. To the extent allowed by law, access to employee files is limited to the following:
- Each active employee may review his or her own personnel file in the presence of a person designated by Human Resources provided an appointment is made with the University's Department of Human Resources. No material is to be removed except as specifically authorized by the University's Department of Human Resources.
- Other employees of The University of Alabama may have access to personnel files only on a need to know basis. This means access is limited to:
- Human Resources staff as they need access in the course of their normal duties.
- Supervisors and Managers considering an employee for promotion or transfer into their departments or location.
- Others only as specifically authorized by the Associate Vice President for Human Resources or a designee of the Associate Vice President for Human Resources.
- Individuals who are not employees of the University may not, except with specific authorization, have access to the files themselves. Generally, such access would be granted only upon advice of counsel (for example, in response to a subpoena, summons, or request for information from a federal administrative or law enforcement agency). Unless specifically authorized by appropriate officials, no one should extract information from personnel records and/or disclose opinions or assessments of employee job performance or give opinions or assessments of employee job performance or attitudes.
These files are important in that they enable the University to maintain consistent information about employees.
It is a violation of this policy to release information from employee personnel records, including, but not limited to, information pertaining to medical/health, salary, etc. or to disseminate such information to individuals who have no legitimate business need to know.
Scope
This policy applies to all faculty and staff.