Employment

Senate Confirms Rob Black As New Mexico Economic Development Department Secretary

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Rob Black

SENATE News:

SANTA FE — The New Mexico Senate March 19 unanimously confirmed Rob Black as the cabinet secretary for the Economic Development Department.

“Sec. Black understands that expanding economic security starts with creating high-quality jobs,” Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said. “Rob is proving that his broad experience and consensus-building skills will grow our economy and expand opportunity in all corners of the state.” 

Born and raised in Lovington, Black graduated from the University of New Mexico and the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco. Read More

Ph.D. Candidate Addison Nace Named Summer Research Fellow At Museum Of International Folk Art

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Addison Nace

MIFA News:

SANTA FE – Addison Nace, a Ph.D. candidate in Design Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, has been selected as the 2025 Museum of International Folk Art Summer Research Fellow. Nace will work with local artists and researchers to showcase the ways in which folk art traditions, particularly textiles, explore broader economic practices while respecting and protecting Indigenous knowledge systems. 

Nace’s research focuses on textile history, sustainable design, decolonial museum practices, and the protection of Indigenous knowledge through craft. Read More

LARSO Executive Director Jacci Gruninger To Speak At National Council On Aging Conference In Washington D.C.

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LARSO Executive Director Jacci Gruninger

By KIAH MCCONNELL
Marketing & Program Coordinator
LARSO

Los Alamos Retired and Senior Organization (LARSO) Executive Director Jacci Gruninger has been selected to present at the National Council on Aging’s Age+Action Conference, happening in May in Washington, D.C. As the premier aging conference in the nation, this event brings together thought leaders, practitioners, and advocates in the field to share innovative solutions and strategies that enhance the lives of older adults.

Gruninger will present on LARSO’s successful scam awareness Read More

Robinson: New Mexico Doctors – ‘We Are Exhausted And Demoralized’

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By SHERRY ROBINSON
All She Wrote
© 2024 New Mexico News Services

Five progressives killed the medical malpractice bill.

You might say the trial lawyers got their money’s worth. You might say it’s late in the session and everybody’s getting tired and cranky. You could even observe that the strife of national politics has haunted this legislative session. It would all be true.

But there’s another element that’s more troubling, and that’s denial and willful ignorance.

New Mexico doesn’t have enough doctors. It’s a national problem, but it’s worse here. In recent years New Mexico was the ONLY state Read More

Dannemann: The Trial Lawyer Argument Is Bogus

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By MERILEE DANNEMANN
© 2025 by Merilee Dannemann

In New Mexico, there aren’t enough doctors. There aren’t enough nurses. There aren’t enough hospitals, especially in small towns. There aren’t enough patients paying full price for their healthcare and too many on Medicaid.

You probably already know this. We talk about it all the time.  

Two other factors contribute to this crisis. One is the presence of private for-profit ownership of hospitals and the other is our high rate of malpractice insurance.

But one of these two issues is claiming to be the solution to the other one, and that is pure nonsense. Read More

Governor Appoint Two Judges To Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court

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Judge Andrea Gunderson

STATE News:

SANTA FE — New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has announced the appointment of two judges to fill vacancies on the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court following the retirements of Honorable Linda S. Rogers and Honorable Frank A. Sedillo.

A graduate of the University of New Mexico School of Law, Andrea Gunderson, of Albuquerque, currently serves as a special commissioner on the 2nd Judicial District Court conducting hearings on behalf of District Children’s Court Judges in areas of abuse and neglect, juvenile delinquency, and mental health commitments, Read More

Paid Leave Likely Dead After Stalling In Senate Committee

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New Mexico Capitol in Santa Fe. Courtesy/wikipedia/Einar Einarsson Kvaran

By NATHAN BROWN
The Santa Fe New Mexican

A bill to create a state-run paid family and medical leave program is not likely to pass this year after failing in the Senate Finance Committee.

House Bill 11 failed on an 8-3 vote Saturday, with just three Democrats voting in favor of the measure.

Advocates for the concept have been pushing for the past several years to create such a program, offering extended paid leave for workers for certain reasons, such as to seek medical care, welcome a new child or care for a family member.

Last Read More

NMED Petitions For Rule On Workplace Heat Protection

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NMED News:

SANTA FE—The New Mexico Environment Department’s (NMED) Occupational Health and Safety Bureau yesterday submitted a petition to the state’s Environmental Improvement Board to adopt a proposed rule on occupational heat illness and injury prevention. 

The rule is a critical step in protecting New Mexico workers from exposure to high temperatures while at work.  

The New Mexico Environment Department, and the Department’s Occupational Health and Safety Bureau, have been actively advocating for worker safety in hot environments for several years through public outreach, presentations Read More

Robinson: How Many Doctors Do We Have To Lose In New Mexico Before Lawmakers Act?

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By SHERRY ROBINSON
All She Wrote
© 2024 New Mexico News Services

Dr. Lawrence Andrade and his wife, Dr. Aedra Andrade, are leaving Gallup. He’s a private practice family medicine doctor and owner of Family Medicine Associates. He’s practiced in Gallup since 2003. She’s a family practice physician with Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital. Together they have 9,000 active patients in a place that’s already undeserved.

Andrade has deep roots here, which makes his loss all the more painful. He’s a Gallup native and graduate of Gallup High School, UNM and the UNM School of Medicine. He is the team Read More

New Mexico Paid Leave Bill Clears First Senate Committee

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House Sponsor Rep. Christine Chandler

By NATHAN BROWN
The Santa Fe New Mexican

A bill to extend paid time off to more New Mexico workers took a step closer to becoming law Saturday.

The Paid Family and Medical Leave Act passed out of the Senate Tax, Business and Transportation Committee on a 6-4 party-line vote. It now heads to the Senate Finance Committee, which approved last year’s version of the bill.

Paid leave advocates have been pushing for years to create a state-run program. Last year’s bill passed the Senate before failing narrowly in the House. This year’s bill started in and has already Read More