Tuesday, April 20, 2021
On April 7, 2021, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed House Bill 20, enacting the Healthy Workplaces Act (HWA), which will require private employers in New Mexico with at least one employee to provide paid sick leave to employees. The new law becomes effective on July 1, 2022.
Under the HWA, employers must allow employees, including part-time, seasonal, and temporary workers, to accrue earned sick leave (ESL) at a rate of
one hour for every 30 hours worked. Employees may use
up to 64 hours of ESL per 12-month period. ESL must be paid at the employee’s regular hourly rate. Employees may carry over any accrued, unused ESL; however, “an employer is not required to permit an employee to use more than [64] hours in a [12]-month period.”