Wage & Hour
New Law Adds Training Records to Employee Personnel File Rights
Updated
Senate Bill 513, authored by Senator Durazo, amends Labor Code section 1198.5 to specify that the personnel records employees may inspect include education and training records, and it lists the information such records must contain when an employer keeps them. The measure was filed with the Secretary of State on October 11, 2025, and takes effect January 1, 2026.
Background
Labor Code section 2810.5 aside, the core right at issue here lives in Labor Code section 1198.5. That section already gives current and former employees, or their representatives, the right to inspect and receive a copy of the personnel records an employer keeps relating to the employee’s performance or to any grievance concerning the employee.
Existing law sets out how and when the employer must make those records available, generally within 30 calendar days of a written request. A violation of section 1198.5 is an infraction, and the statute already allowed a $750 penalty along with injunctive relief, costs, and reasonable attorney’s fees.
What the Law Changes
SB 513 states that the performance-related personnel records an employee may inspect include education and training records. It reaches any employer that maintains such records and applies to both current and former employees and their authorized representatives.
When an employer keeps education or training records, section 1198.5 now requires those records to include the employee’s name, the name of the training provider, the duration and date of the training, the core competencies of the training (including skills in equipment or software), and the resulting certification or qualification.
Education and training records now fall within the personnel records employees may inspect under Labor Code section 1198.5, and an employer that keeps such records must ensure they contain the specified details about the employee, provider, dates, competencies, and any resulting certification.
Scope and Existing Limits
The amendment leaves the surrounding framework of section 1198.5 in place. The existing timing rules, the once-per-year limit on former-employee requests, the cap on requests from employee representatives, and the exclusions for items such as reference letters and criminal-investigation records continue to apply.
The statute also retains its exemption for employees covered by a qualifying collective bargaining agreement that addresses wages, hours, working conditions, a records inspection procedure, overtime premiums, and a regular rate at least 30 percent above the state minimum wage.
What This Means for You
The right to inspect personnel records under Labor Code section 1198.5 now expressly covers education and training records, and employers that keep such records must include the listed details. The change touches recordkeeping and inspection requests in California employment relationships.
I write these summaries as general information about developments in California employment law. They are not legal advice and don’t create a mediator–client relationship. For guidance on a specific matter, consult a qualified attorney.