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Employee Housing

Application and Scope (Return to E.H. Main Page)

1. The Employee Housing Act and the adopted regulations govern the standards for the construction,  maintenance, use, and occupancy of living quarters, called "employee housing," provided for five or more employees under specified circumstances. Employee housing subject to the Act is privately operated and does not include government owned or operated migrant worker facilities.
2. Certain types of housing are exempt from all or part of the provisions of the Employee Housing Act while other facilities may have a partial exemption. (See Health and Safety Code Sections 17030 - 17039) Examples of these exempt facilities include:
   • Housing maintained in connection with a horse racing facility. (See Sections 19455 and 19481.5 of the Business and Professions Code for additional information)
   • "Employee Community Housing," which is a community of at least 200 single-family dwellings of four or more rooms owned and maintained by the employer, pursuant to the provisions of the State Housing Law , is not subject to the Act.
   • Properly maintained permanent housing, including manufactured homes and mobilehomes on a dairy farm, may be exempted from the annual permitting requirements of the Act.
3. In general, employee housing is privately owned housing which houses five or more employees and meets the following:
   • Living quarters provided in connection with any work, whether or not rent is involved.
   • Housing in a rural area which is:
     • Provided by someone who is not an agricultural employer, and
     • Provided for agricultural workers employed by any agricultural employer.
4. Any city, county, or city and county may assume responsibility for enforcement of the Employee Housing Act upon written notice to, and approval by the Department. Where a local government has not assumed enforcement responsibility, or enforcement has been taken away from a local agency because of nonenforcement, the Department is the enforcement agency.
5. The Department conducts complaint investigations under its Employee Housing Act enforcement activities for alleged violation of the Act. Anyone wishing to file a complaint may print out the Department’s Complaint Form and submit it to the Department’s Ombudsman’s Office
   • HCD 421 English (Employee Housing Request for Assistance)
   • HCD-421 Spanish (Solicitud Para Ayuda-Viviendas de Empleados)

(See Health and Safety Code Section 17008 for complete definition)

(See Health and Safety Code Section 17050 for enforcement authority)