No federal law gives an employee the right to access and inspect their personnel file maintained by their employer—but some state laws do. Many states require public employers to allow employees to access and inspect their personnel files—and some states require private employers to do so as well.

Some states limit an employee’s right to access and inspect their personnel file to certain documents—and some states require an employer to provide employees with certain documents (such as a disciplinary document) within a certain number of days after it is placed in the employee’s personnel file (known as an adverse-action notice).

Laws regarding whether employees have the right to access and inspect their personnel file—and if so, the circumstances under which they may do so—are generally located in a state’s statutes.

In Alaska, employees have the right to access and inspect their personnel files. Alaska Statute 23.10.430 requires employers to provide current and former employees the opportunity to inspect and copy their personnel records within a reasonable time after the employee makes a request. This right is limited to once per year unless otherwise provided by law. The statute applies to both public and private employers. However, there are some exceptions to this rule; for example, employers are not required to disclose information that is deemed as a trade secret or information that is related to an ongoing criminal investigation. Additionally, if a disciplinary action has been taken against an employee, the employer must notify the employee and provide them with a copy of the disciplinary document. This ensures that employees are aware of any adverse actions that may affect their employment status and have the opportunity to respond or correct any inaccuracies.