Legal notification regarding employee files?

[juijui01]

I recently quit my job of almost 5 years. I left with bad terms with my boss. She's a b****, I decided I didnt need her bs anymore. Anyhow, a former co-worker, who is still with the company, told me my former boss told her that she was going to mark my permanent file as "ineligible for re-hire."

My questions are as follows:
-If such an action were to have taken place, would they be required to notify me of it?
-Are they allowed to tell other companies that I apply to that I'm "ineligible for re-hire?"
-Can she get in trouble for discussing my permanent file with another employee?

I live in the state of MN, and am a banker, to fill in those gaps!

 

[cbg]

1.) No, they are not required to notify you of anything they put in your file.
2.) Yes, if that's what it says in your file.
3.) Not legal trouble. Possibly internal trouble with the company.

In your state you have the right to see your file (once) within the year following your termination. You have the right to insert a rebuttal of any information with which you do not agree.

For what it's worth, I'm a long time HR manager and I do not necessarily consider "ineligible for rehire" to be the kiss of death. I am well aware that many companies have a policy of not rehiring any employees and thus everyone who leaves is automatically ineligible for rehire.

 

[juijui01]

Prospective employers....

Thank you CBG. That information was very helpful!
But, I do have a few more questions....

To clarify one more thing...
I left under wonderful terms with both of my immediate managers. I left under bad terms with the regional manager. The truth is she hated me, I hated her. And she hated me even more when I decided to resign. Now, those two managers I spoke of... they are no longer with the company either. Both were fired for bogus reasons shortly after I quit.

As an HR manager, what is your advice for what I should tell any prospective employers? I do not, as of now, know that my file has anything negative in it at all. So what should I say when I am asked "Why did you leave this company?" or "Did you leave under good terms?" Would I be lying if I said yes? But wouldnt telling them about the bad terms also hurt my chances? Would an HR rep actually listen to "my side" of the story?
I have read articles about how many companies are choosing not to give any info (aside from the basic hire date and termination date) on former employees due to risk of law suits from negative feedback. But, assuming they decide to share more than the basics, are they then required to give an explanation as to why they made this decision? For that matter, are they allowed to? I ask this because I believe that any information they would give would very likely be false.
Finally, this company has a history of "losing" important documents. If I were to insert a rebuttal into my file, how can I guarantee that it will acutally go into my file and be seen?

I know some of this sounds a bit irate and hostile, but these are honest concerns!

Thanks!

 

[cbg]

Let me think about this one for a bit.