Call To Action – Tell Albuquerque city councilors NO to more business mandates

Albuquerque City Councillors are at it again, quietly proposing business mandates we already voted down.

The City Councillors in Albuquerque are trying again to pass yet another version of the previously defeated paid time off mandate for businesses. This effort is nearly identical to the one voted down in 2017 by Albuquerque residents and the most recent failed attempt from August of 2020.

The proposed paid time off mandate comes on top of a minimum wage increase passed by the NM Legislature from $9.35 an hour to $10.50 an hour beginning in January. That’s a 12% increase wage increase baked in at the end of this year. Few, if any local businesses have lucky enough to achieve 12% growth this year. In fact, the list of local business closures in recent months (due mostly to COVID 19) is long and adding more daily. The minimum wage increase was decided over a year ago and can’t be changed even as businesses seek to make end meet in the wake of COVID 19. Adding another mandate to the pile will only push our local businesses closer to the edge.

NMBC’s position is that blanket mandates like these proposals are unnecessary and a growing burden on small business owners who are trying to maintain or grow their operations. Wages and benefits should be negotiated between the employer and employee with respect to the unique situations and constraints for every business. Government attempts to micromanage this process lead to serious problems and reduce the opportunities for growth and employment for businesses and employees alike.