(1) The general assembly hereby finds, determines, and declares that many businesses, such as nursing homes or building management companies, either desire or are required by law to have staff on premises at all times. As part of the compensation for such employees, many employers offer housing to employees. However, once that employment relationship ceases, it may become undesirable for such employees to occupy the premises for many reasons, including the safety of the employer's patients, clients, customers, or tenants. Under traditional landlord and tenant law, such employees may have established the technical or legal right to occupy the premises for a fixed term that continues far beyond the cessation of the employment relationship. However, in employment situations, such occupancy is not a tenancy, but a license to occupy the premises pursuant to an employment relationship. The occupancy of the premises by the employee is not entered into by the employer for the purpose of providing housing, but merely as a means to provide services to the employer's patients, clients, customers, or tenants. In certain cases, it may be necessary to curtail the occupancy of former employees in order to protect the rights or safety of an employer's tenants or patients.
(2) (a) Pursuant to a written agreement meeting the requirements of paragraph (b) of this subsection (2), a license to occupy the premises entered into as part of an employee's compensation may be terminated at any time after the employment relationship ceases between an employer and employee. A termination of a license to occupy the premises shall be effective three days after the service of written notice of termination of a license to occupy the premises.
(b) An agreement made pursuant to this section shall be in writing and shall include the following:
The names of the employer and employee;
A statement that the license to occupy the premises is provided to the employee aspart of the employee's compensation and is subject to termination at any time after the employment relationship ceases;
The address of the premises; and
The signature of both the employer and the employee.
(c) The notice of termination of a license to occupy the premises shall describe the premises and shall set forth the time when the license to occupy the premises will terminate. The notice shall be signed by the employer or the employer's agent or attorney.
(3) If an employee fails to vacate the premises within three days after the receipt of the notice of termination of the license to occupy the premises, the employer may contact the county sheriff to have the employee removed from the premises. The county sheriff shall remove the employee and any personal property of the employee from the premises upon the showing to the county sheriff of the notice of termination of the license to occupy the premises and agreement pursuant to which the license to occupy the premises was granted.
Source: L. 2003: Entire article amended with relocations, p. 1862, § 1, effective August 6.
Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 8-4-127 as it existed prior to 2003, and the former § 8-4-123 was relocated to § 8-4-110 (2).