New Mexico Paid Leave Laws: Sick Leave, Family Leave & FMLA (2026)

Does New Mexico Require Paid Sick Leave?

Yes. New Mexico requires all private employers — regardless of size — to provide earned paid sick leave under the Healthy Workplaces Act (HWA), NMSA 1978, §§ 50-17-1 through 50-17-11. Signed by Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham on April 7, 2021, the Act took effect July 1, 2022. The Labor Relations Division (LRD) of the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions administers and enforces the HWA. (Source: dws.state.nm.us/NMPaidSickLeave)

Which Employers Are Covered Under New Mexico’s Sick Leave Law?

The HWA applies to every private employer with one or more employees — there is no minimum employer size threshold. Employers subject to the federal Railway Labor Act are exempt, as are the United States, the State of New Mexico, and any of its political subdivisions. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-2)

In determining the number of employees for purposes of the accrual caps, all employees performing work for compensation — full-time, part-time, and temporary — are counted. When employee headcount fluctuates, the Act applies the average number of employees across the relevant period. (Source: dws.state.nm.us — HWA Reference Guide)

Employers whose existing paid time off policies are more generous than the HWA’s minimum accrual and usage limits are compliant if employees may use that leave for the same purposes and under the same terms and conditions as specified in the Act. (Source: dws.state.nm.us/NMPaidSickLeave)

Which Employees Are Eligible for New Mexico Paid Sick Leave?

All employees who perform work in New Mexico for more than 80 hours in a calendar year are covered — this includes full-time, part-time, seasonal, and temporary workers. Employees accrue earned sick leave from their first day of employment. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-2)

Exempt from HWA coverage are:

• Independent contractors (employers who misclassify employees as independent contractors are in violation of the Act)
• Employees subject to the federal Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act
• Individuals who perform work in New Mexico for 80 hours or fewer in a calendar year
• Federal, state, and local government employees (public employers)
• Workers on tribal land (coverage for work on tribal land requires case-by-case jurisdictional analysis) (Source: dws.state.nm.us — HWA Reference Guide)

Employees exempt from overtime requirements under the federal FLSA (29 U.S.C. § 213(a)(1)) are assumed to work 40 hours per week for accrual purposes, unless their typical workweek is shorter. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-3)

Accrual, Frontloading & Caps

Accrual rate: All employees accrue a minimum of 1 hour of earned sick leave for every 30 hours worked, beginning on the first day of employment. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-3)

Annual usage caps:

• Employers with fewer than 10 employees: Employees may use up to 40 hours of earned sick leave per 12-month period
• Employers with 10 or more employees: Employees may use up to 64 hours of earned sick leave per 12-month period
• Employers may provide more sick leave than the Act requires (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-3)

12-month period: Employers select the applicable 12-month period, choosing from: (a) a calendar year; (b) any fixed 12-month leave year such as a fiscal year or an employee’s anniversary date; (c) the 12-month period measured forward from the employee’s first use of earned sick leave; or (d) a rolling 12-month period measured backward from the date of use. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-3)

Frontloading option: Instead of accrual, an employer may grant employees the full amount of leave they could accrue in a year at the outset of each 12-month period. Employers who elect frontloading must frontload a minimum of 64 hours on January 1 of each year (or the start of the applicable 12-month period). The 12-month period used by the employer for usage and carryover does not govern frontloaded amounts — frontloading is applied from the start of the calendar year. (Source: dws.state.nm.us — HWA Reference Guide)

Carryover: Accrued but unused earned sick leave carries over from one year to the next. Employers may cap carryover at 64 hours from year to year. (Source: dws.state.nm.us — HWA Reference Guide)

Rehire: If an employee separates from employment and is rehired by the same employer within 12 months, previously accrued earned sick leave that was not used or paid out must be reinstated. The reinstated employee may use and accrue sick leave immediately upon reinstatement. (Source: dws.state.nm.us/NMPaidSickLeave)

Payout on separation: The Act does not require employers to pay out accrued unused earned sick leave on separation. (Source: dws.state.nm.us/NMPaidSickLeave)

Use of leave on first day: Earned sick leave begins accruing from day one of employment, and employees may use leave as it accrues with no additional waiting period. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-3)

Prohibition on exhausting other leave first: Under the HWA, an employer may not require an employee to use other paid leave before using earned sick leave. (Source: nmlegis.gov — HB0415, 2025)

Qualifying Reasons for Paid Sick Leave in New Mexico

Under NMSA § 50-17-3, earned sick leave may be used for: (Source: dws.state.nm.us/NMPaidSickLeave)

For the employee:

• Mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition
• Medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition
• Preventive medical care

For care of a family member:

• The family member’s mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition
• The family member’s medical diagnosis, care, or treatment
• The family member’s preventive medical care
• Meetings at the employee’s child’s school or place of care related to the child’s health or disability

Safe leave — domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking (employee or family member):

• Obtaining medical or psychological treatment or other counseling
• Relocating
• Preparing for or participating in legal proceedings
• Obtaining services or assisting a family member with any of the above activities

This safe leave provision gives New Mexico’s HWA notably broader coverage than some other state sick leave laws. (Source: dws.state.nm.us/NMPaidSickLeave)

Supplemental public health emergency leave: On the date a public health emergency is declared, the HWA requires employers to provide supplemental paid sick leave for emergency-related absences, in addition to accrued earned sick leave. The supplemental amount is at least 80 hours for employees normally working 40 or more hours per week. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-4)

Definition of Family Member Under the HWA

The Healthy Workplaces Act defines “family member” to include an employee’s spouse or domestic partner, or a person related to an employee or the employee’s spouse or domestic partner as: (Source: dws.state.nm.us/NMPaidSickLeave)

• A biological, adopted, or foster child, a stepchild, legal ward, or a child to whom the employee stands in loco parentis
• A biological, foster, step, or adoptive parent, legal guardian, or a person who stood in loco parentis to the employee when the employee was a minor
• A grandparent
• A grandchild
• A biological, foster, step, or adopted sibling
• A spouse or domestic partner of a family member
• An individual whose close association with the employee or the employee’s spouse or domestic partner is the equivalent of a family relationship

The inclusion of domestic partners and the broad “equivalent of a family relationship” standard makes New Mexico’s definition one of the most expansive among state sick leave laws. (Source: dws.state.nm.us/NMPaidSickLeave)

Pay Rate, Notice & Documentation

Pay rate: Earned sick leave is compensated at the same hourly rate and with the same benefits as the employee normally earns during hours worked. In no case may the hourly rate be less than the applicable state minimum wage. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-2)

Employee notice: Leave may be requested orally or in writing. For foreseeable leave (defined as leave the employee knows about seven or more days in advance), the employee must make a reasonable effort to provide advance notice under the employer’s written notice policy. For unforeseeable leave, notification must occur as soon as practicable. Employers may not require written notice for unforeseeable absences; oral notification suffices unless the employer’s written policy requires otherwise. (Source: dws.state.nm.us — HWA Reference Guide) (Source: nmlegis.gov — HB0415, 2025)

Documentation: Employers may not require documentation unless an employee uses two or more consecutive days of earned sick leave. When documentation is required, the following are acceptable: a statement signed by a healthcare professional; or, for domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking leave, a police report, court-issued document, or signed statement from a victim services organization, clergy member, attorney, advocate, or other knowledgeable person. Employers may not require documentation that describes the nature of a medical condition or the details of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking. If documentation is required, the employer bears the cost of any verification by a healthcare professional. Employers may not delay the start of earned sick leave while awaiting documentation. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-6)

Confidentiality: All information obtained by an employer related to an employee’s reasons for taking sick leave is confidential and may not be disclosed except with the employee’s permission or as necessary for insurance disability claim validation or ADA accommodation purposes. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-6)

Recordkeeping: Employers must maintain records documenting hours worked and earned sick leave taken for each employee for a 48-month period. Each pay period (or at least quarterly), employers must provide employees a written summary of: hours worked, sick leave accrued, and sick leave used year-to-date. This requirement may be satisfied by reporting the information on pay stubs or through an accessible online portal. (Source: dws.state.nm.us — HWA Reference Guide)

Employer posting: Covered employers must display a poster containing required HWA employee rights information in a conspicuous and accessible place in each establishment. The poster must be provided in English, Spanish, and any language that is the first language spoken by at least 10 percent of the employer’s workforce. Model posters in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Diné (Navajo) are available from the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions at dws.state.nm.us/NMPaidSickLeave. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-7)

Retaliation Protections and Penalties

The HWA prohibits retaliation against employees who use or attempt to use earned sick leave, file a complaint, or raise concerns about HWA violations. “Retaliation” under NMSA § 50-17-2 includes any threat, discharge, discipline, suspension, demotion, non-promotion, less favorable scheduling, reduction of hours, or application of absence control policies that count the use of earned sick leave as an absence that may lead to adverse action. Employers may not count use of sick leave in a way that will lead to discipline, discharge, demotion, reduction of hours, or any other adverse action. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-8)

Employers are prohibited from requiring employees to find or arrange a replacement worker as a condition of using earned sick leave. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-3)

Enforcement and penalties: An employer that violates HWA provisions is guilty of a misdemeanor under NMSA § 50-17-10. Civil liability includes unpaid or underpaid sick leave plus interest, plus an additional amount equal to twice the unpaid or underpaid sick leave, and any other actual damages. In retaliation cases, damages include back pay, wages, and benefits lost, plus $250 (or $500 for termination). Employees have a private right of action in district court within three years of the alleged violation. The Labor Relations Division may also investigate complaints and, for violations affecting multiple employees, initiate directed workplace-wide investigations. (Source: nmlegis.gov — NMSA § 50-17-10)