New Mexico employers that offer or are considering offering a wellness program should be aware that on May 16th, 2016, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) published the final version of two rules that regulate employer-sponsored wellness programs.  The rules provide…

On May 23, 2016, the United States Supreme Court decided that an employee’s time to file a discrimination charge for an alleged constructive discharge begins to run on the day that the employee quits his or her job (or gives notice of…

The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (the “DOL”) issued its final rule Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales and Computer Employees on May 17, 2016 (the “rule” or “final rule”).  The rule significantly impacts who…

The complexity of the Health Insurance Portability and Accounting Act (HIPAA) makes it difficult for well-intentioned employers to ensure compliance with its provisions. We often field calls from New Mexico employers asking if HIPAA applies in certain situations and what steps they…

In 2010, New Mexico’s Legislature enacted the Whistleblower Protection Act (WPA).  Generally, the purpose of a whistleblower protection act is to protect employees who risk job security for the good of the public by disclosing unlawful and improper actions of public officials. …

Minimum wage rates vary in New Mexico depending on where your business is located. Employers must grant leave to victims of domestic violence. Employers must pay all unpaid wages to some discharged workers within FIVE days of discharge. Employers who fail to…

Corporate trendsetters are moving in the direction of eliminating a historical function of human resource departments: the annual performance evaluation. Accenture recently declared its independence from the evaluation process, but it is certainly not alone in its departure from this time honored…

When defending against an employee’s claims, an initial step that every employer should take is to determine if the employee has filed a Chapter 7 Voluntary Petition for bankruptcy in the recent past. If an employee filed for bankruptcy and failed to…

In 1998, the United States Supreme Court created an affirmative defense for employers who have been sued for discrimination or harassment and who can show that “(1) the employer exercised reasonable care to prevent and correct promptly any . . . harassing…

Employer wellness programs are generally designed as a way to improve employee health and to reduce health care costs to employers. Some wellness programs ask employees to engage in healthier behavior (for example, by becoming more active, not smoking or eating better),…