NMCLP advocates for robust enforcement of wage and anti-retaliation protections. Workers who have been unpaid or underpaid face significant obstacles in getting the money they are owed. Employers often retaliate against workers who complain of unlawful activity. Most low-wage New Mexicans rely on government agencies to enforce their rights—agencies that too frequently have failed to effectively enforce the wage laws. 

In partnership with workers and worker organizing groups, we reached a groundbreaking class settlement agreement stopping the state’s illegal rejection of wage complaints. The agreement ensures the state will carry out its duty to enforce New Mexico’s anti-wage theft laws and hold employers accountable when they violate these laws by creating a wage claim investigations manual, training state workers, and providing services to workers in the language they speak. This includes a comprehensive manual for the state to use to guide wage theft enforcement. As a result of the settlement, thousands of New Mexicans are now able to recover lost wages and the case will not be dismissed until the state is in full compliance with the settlement. We continue to advocate for the Legislature to provide adequate resources to the Department of Workforce Solutions to investigate wage claims and enforce the law. Wage claimants can find information about the filing procedure on the Labor Relations Division website.