Employee Personnel File Access Requirements in Oregon

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Records covered and excluded

ORS 652.750(2) covers personnel records used to decide employment qualifications, promotion, additional compensation, termination, or other discipline. Although the same subsection also includes time and pay records, those payroll records are outside this survey's scope.

The definition excludes criminal conviction, arrest, and investigation records, confidential reports from previous employers, and records maintained under ORS 352.226.

Request, 45-day deadline, inspection, and copy

The statute states no written-request or identity-document formality. Within 45 days after receiving the request, the employer must provide a reasonable opportunity to inspect at the place of employment or work assignment and must furnish a certified copy (§ 652.750(2)).

If the records are not readily available, the employer and employee may agree to extend the deadline. The employer may charge only an amount reasonably calculated to recover its actual cost (§ 652.750(4)-(5)).

Correction and enforcement

Ordinary employees do not receive a general correction or written-rebuttal right under § 652.750. Public safety officers have a special process: a 30-day response to an adverse comment and a written request to correct or delete mistakenly or unlawfully placed material, followed by an employer response within 30 days.

The employer must retain personnel records for at least 60 days after termination. BOLI accepts complaints, and ORS 652.900 authorizes the Commissioner to assess a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for violating § 652.750.

What trips people up

Inspection and copying are parallel duties. Offering a copy does not erase an employee's statutory right to a reasonable inspection opportunity at the workplace or work assignment when inspection is requested.

The 45-day extension is not unilateral. It applies when records are not readily available and the employer and employee agree to extend the time.

The 60-day rule is a minimum retention period after termination, not a deadline for every request. A former worker should still request promptly because the statute does not require personnel records to be kept longer than 60 days.

Common questions

Can the employer charge for copies?

Yes, but no more than an amount reasonably calculated to recover the actual cost of providing the inspection/copy services.

Must the copy be notarized?

No formal notarization process is stated. BOLI explains that a signed cover letter from the records custodian or HR manager certifying the copies as true and correct is sufficient.

Can I force correction of an inaccurate evaluation?

Not under the ordinary employee provisions of § 652.750. The express correction and attached-response process is limited to public safety officers.

Statutes and sources

• ORS 652.750(1)-(2): covered/excluded records, 45-day workplace inspection, and certified copy — official text (accessed July 12, 2026).
• ORS 652.750(3)-(5): 60-day post-termination retention, agreed extension, and actual-cost cap — official text (accessed July 12, 2026).
• ORS 652.750(6)-(7): public-safety-officer adverse-comment and correction process — official text (accessed July 12, 2026).
• ORS 652.900(1)-(2): BOLI civil penalty up to $1,000 — official text (accessed July 12, 2026).