New Mexico: Final Regulations Issued for Paid Sick Leave

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All Employers with NM Employees

EFFECTIVE

July 1, 2022

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The New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions (DWS) recently published final regulations impacting the Healthy Workplaces Act (HWA) requirements for paid sick leave (PSL). The following is a summary of key components employers should note.

 

Fresh Slate on July 1st. Employers cannot offset the requirements under the HWA starting July 1st with leave employees already earned or used since January 1st. Employers must ensure compliance with the new rules as of July 1st.

Frontloading in 2022. Employers may frontload PSL in 2022, but must provide the full 64 hours required, even though the HWA will only be in effect for half the year.

 

Capped Carryover. Although there is no provision for capping accrual of PSL, the regulations allow employers to limit carryover of accrued, unused  time to 64 hours. This is true regardless of whether employers use an accrual or frontloading method of providing PSL.

 

Enriched Benefits Protected. DWS seems to imply that when an employer provides a greater benefit than what is required under the HWA, all of the benefit provided, including the HWA required portion and any enriched portion, is subject to the terms of the HWA. DWS even goes so far to say that it will enforce any enriched portion of employer benefits.

 

Paystubs and Quarterly Usage Statements. Although employers are not expressly required to note HWA leave on paystubs, DWS now says that HWA leave is a “benefit earned” which means that it must be displayed on paystubs. Additionally, employers are required to provide statement at least once per calendar quarter with a year-to-date summary of HWA leave accrued and used. This information may be provided electronically or on paystubs.

 

Documentation for Leave. DWS indicates that employees required to provide documentation when taking two or more consecutive workdays of PSL must be given 14 days from the date they return to work to provide the documentation to the employer.

 

The regulations also address other issues like accrual for part-time workers, rate of pay, requiring use of leave, and tracking hours worked. Employers should review the new regulations and FAQs for further guidance.

Action Items

  1. Have paid sick leave policies updated.
  2. Have payroll processes updated.
  3. Have appropriate personnel trained on the new requirements.
  4. Subscribers can call our HR On-Call Hotline at (888) 378-2456 for further assistance.

Disclaimer: This document is designed to provide general information and guidance concerning employment-related issues. It is presented with the understanding that ManagEase is not engaged in rendering any legal opinions. If a legal opinion is needed, please contact the services of your own legal adviser. © 2022 ManagEase