1.
Personnel
Files
a.
The University shall
designate an office in which the personnel file shall be maintained. The
University shall also designate an office with overall responsibility for
personnel files. Where necessary for administration of the NSFıs employment,
materials may be kept in other offices.
b.
Personnel files shall,
except with the written consent of the NSF, contain only those records
necessary and appropriate to the administration of the NSFıs employment at the
University. It is recognized that some routine information (e.g. payroll and
benefits information) may be kept in forms other than that included in the
personnel file. Personnel actions may
not be based on any material that is not part of the official personnel file.
c.
Any
non-confidential item placed in a personnel file shall be clearly identified as
to its source or originator and its date of receipt by the University.
2.
Personnel
Review Files
Personnel review files are
developed in preparation for the performance assessment of the NSF undertaken
in accordance with the MOU.
Personnel review files may contain both confidential and non-confidential
academic review records, as described below. An individualıs personnel review file shall contain only
material relevant to consideration of personnel actions under the criteria of
this MOU and for the relevant review period. Correspondence
involving potential disciplinary actions that do not result in disciplinary
actions shall not be included in the personnel review file. Materials involving
final disciplinary action may be included only to the extent that
such material is relevant,
according to the standards of this MOU, to the personnel action for which the
review file has been assembled.
Personnel actions
based upon a review of the performance of NSF, such as
reappointment/non-reappointment and merit actions, shall be based solely upon
the material contained in the individualıs personnel review file. No materials excluded by this article
from personnel files may be included in personnel review files.
3.
Grievance
Materials
Grievance documents and
documents referring to, or arising out of, a grievance shall not be contained
in the official personnel file. Grievance materials shall be kept separately.
B.
Access By Individuals Other Than The NSF
Access
by University representatives and employees to confidential and
non-confidential material in personnel files and personnel review records
(synonymous with confidential academic review records as referenced in Appendix
F Definitions of Confidential and Non-Confidential Academic Review Records), and
other confidential information shall be strictly limited to those
representatives and employees who need access to information in the personnel
file in the performance of their officially assigned duties, provided that such
access is related to the purpose for which the information was acquired. Members of the public and
non-governmental entities shall not have access to confidential personnel files
except as required by law.
C.
Right to Inspect
1.
Upon
reasonable notice to the office designated to maintain the official personnel file/personnel
review file, NSF shall have the right to inspect all non‑confidential
reports, documents, correspondence, and other material in their official
personnel file(s)/personnel review file(s) and in personnel files maintained at
the departmental level. NSF shall be entitled to copies of
confidential material, if any, in their personnel files(s)/ personnel review
files, which may be redacted to the extent necessary to maintain the anonymity
of the sources of the information. NSF shall have the right to have a UC‑AFT
representative or another person of her or his choice accompany her or him to
inspect the NSFıs file(s), so long as the person chosen is not a supervisor,
manager or confidential employee.
2.
NSF may
give written authorization to a representative to review their file(s) in their
absence. The written authorization
shall be valid for thirty (30) calendar days from the date of the signature of
the authorization or within a written time limit specified by the NSF,
whichever is shorter. The representative shall be entitled to examine all non‑confidential
material. Records protected by recognized legal privilege and records exempted
from disclosure by law may be withheld from the NSF and her/his
representative. Subject to these
exceptions, unsolicited documents which request confidentiality shall be
returned to the originator or destroyed.
D.
RIGHT TO COPY
MATERIAL
Under normal circumstances, within ten
(10) working days of a written request, an NSF shall be given a complete copy
of the requested non‑confidential items in the personnel file and a
listing of the types of confidential material within the file. If a written request for a redacted
copy of confidential material is received by the University, the request shall
be fulfilled within thirty (30) working days, under normal circumstances. The University will provide the first copy
of such material at no cost to the NSF.
Subsequent copies will be provided at a cost of ten cents ($.10) per
page.
E. RESPONSES
TO MATERIALS IN FILE
NSF may have responses or documentation
attached for the purpose of challenging or responding to materials in the
personnel file. Any response shall,
unless the NSF requests otherwise, become a part of the file of the NSF. NSF may request, in writing to the
designated administrative officer, deletions and/or corrections of materials
from their file. Within 30
calendar days, the appropriate administrative officer shall determine whether a
requested correction in a statement of fact or a requested deletion will be
made. If material is deleted from
academic personnel records in accordance with the preceding provision, care
shall be taken to ensure that the same material is also deleted from copies of
those records in all locations where such copies are maintained.
F.
Disciplinary Materials
1.
Personnel
Files
a.
Copies of documents,
including letters, that relate to final disciplinary action taken by the
University shall, upon being placed in the NSF personnel file, be provided to
the NSF. The NSFıs written
comments, if any, regarding such documents shall, upon request of the NSF, be
placed in their personnel file. Documents concerning disciplinary action that
do not result in final disciplinary action shall not be included in the
files.
b.
When it
comes to the attention of the University (e.g. through a review of files, or at
the request of the NSF) that an NSFıs personnel file contains documents older
than two years that pertain to disciplinary action not related to the NSFıs
performance, such documents will be removed from the NSFıs personnel file if
there have been no other warnings or discipline pertaining to the same or
similar conduct that resulted in the earlier disciplinary action during the
two-year period.
c.
Notwithstanding
the above provisions, copies of documents, including letters, that the
University is required to maintain to fulfill its legal obligations, may be
retained in the NSFıs personnel file.
2.
Personnel
Review Files
Copies of any letters or documents that are
otherwise permitted under this MOU and University policy, including documents
pertaining to disciplinary actions, may be included in the NSFıs personnel
review file, insofar as the letters or documents pertain to the NSFıs
performance under the criteria of this MOU during the review period.
Confidential material, personal
information, legal privilege, and records, to the extent that each of these is
exempted by law from disclosure under the California Evidence Code or by other statutes and
relevant case law, shall not be
subject to disclosure through Article 32 - Grievance Procedure or Article 33,
Arbitration. In disputes concerning whether material is exempted by law from
disclosure, the Grievance Hearing Officer or Arbitrator may, if necessary to
resolving such controversy, examine the material in camera (outside the
presence of the parties) and rule on the confidentiality of the material,
unless examining the material in camera would be prohibited by law. Where confidential material is relevant to resolving a
grievance or arbitration, the material may be examined in camera by the Hearing
Officer or Arbitrator.