Under Minn. Stat. § 181.933, a former employee may, within 15 working days of his or her termination, request in writing the reasons for his or her termination. The employer must respond to this request in writing within 10 working days of receipt of the request. The response should be truthful, short, and to the point. The statute provides that the employer’s response cannot be the subject of any action for libel, slander, or defamation by the employee against the employer.
If the employee’s file has not been reviewed prior to termination for consistency with statutory requirements and general appropriateness, such a review should be completed immediately following the employee’s termination. To the extent possible, any reasons provided for an employee’s termination should be consistent with the contents of the employee’s personnel file.
