402.5 Personnel Files; Release of Information

Code No. 402.5

PERSONNEL FILES; RELEASE OF INFORMATION

A confidential file of employment records shall be maintained for each employee in the central administration office.  Included in the file shall be the following, without limitation:  licenses and transcripts if required, employment application, references, criminal record and abuse record checks, contracts of employment, formal evaluations, disciplinary reports, and wage information.  Information on leave usage may be maintained separately.  Confidential health information, such as physical forms, sick or long-term disability leave days, worker's compensation claims, emergency information, family and medical leave request forms, and reasonable accommodations to accommodate an employee's disability, shall be maintained separately.

Except in limited instances, only the Superintendent, the employee's supervisor(s), the Board Secretary/Director of Human Resources, the Director of Business Services, the employee, and authorized representatives of the District shall have access to the confidential employee file without the employee's consent or a valid subpoena.  However, information for tax purposes, for qualification for benefits, and for wage garnishment may be released.

Employees who have listed the District as a place of employment or who have listed a District employee as a reference shall be deemed to have granted permission to the District to release information which may be included in the personnel file.  Information from confidential health records shall not be released, however, without permission of the employee except for qualification of benefits.  This does not preclude release of leave usage information to a prospective employer, however.

Only information deemed by law to be public records of an employee will be confirmed to any entity with whom an employee has applied for credit or has obtained credit.  This information will be released without prior written notice to the employee.  Confidential employee information, as defined by Iowa law, will not be released to an inquiring creditor without a written authorization from the employee.

Under Iowa law, public records of employees shall include, but are not limited necessarily to the following:

(1)         the name and compensation of the employee including any written agreement establishing compensation or any other terms of employment excluding any information otherwise excludable from public information pursuant to federal or state law.  For purposes of this paragraph, “compensation” means payment of, or agreement to pay, any money, thing of value, or financial benefit conferred in return for labor or services rendered by an official, officer, or employee plus the value of benefits conferred including but not limited to casualty, disability, life, or health insurance, or health or wellness benefits, vacation, holiday, and sick leave, severance payments, retirement benefits, and deferred compensation;

(2)         the dates the employee was employed by the District;

(3)         the positions the employee holds or has held with the District;

(4)         the educational institutions attended by the employee, including any diplomas and degrees earned, and the names of the employee’s previous employers, positions previously held, and dates of previous employment;

(5)         the fact that the employee resigned in lieu of termination, was discharged, or was demoted as the result of a disciplinary action, and the documented reasons and rationale for the resignation in lieu of termination, discharge, or demotion.  For purposes of this subparagraph, “demoted” and “demotion” mean a change of an employee from a position in a given classification to a position in a classification having a lower pay grade.

Each employee shall have the right to review the contents of his/her own confidential personnel file maintained in the central administration office, except for confidential credentials or reference letters.  An employee desiring to view the contents of his/her file shall make a request to the Superintendent. No papers may be removed from the file, but copies may be obtained.  The employee shall have the right to respond in writing to materials contained in the file.

All employee records, except payroll and salary records, shall be maintained for a minimum of seven years after termination of employment with the District.  Applicant records shall be maintained for a minimum of three years after the position was filled.

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DECORAH COMMUNITY SCHOOL BOARD OF DIRECTORS