The Occupational Health and Safety Act requires employers to provide employees with a safe and healthy work environment.
The Occupational Health and Safety Bureau works to ensure this through:
- Documenting and tracking reports of injuries and fatalities in workplaces
- Compliance inspections
- Enforcement action
Inspections
In addition to regularly required workplace safety inspections, the Environment Department may choose to inspect a workplace if:
- A complaint is filed by an employee or their representative
- We receive a referral from another governmental agency or member of the public
- A workplace accident where three or more individuals are hospitalized occurs
- A workplace fatality occurs
Inspections consist of an opening conference, an inspection walk-around and a closing conference.
Employers are required to report workplace fatalities and certain injuries see the Reporting page for more information.
Enforcement
The New Mexico OSHA Compliance Section enforces safety and health regulations as outlined in 11.5.1 NMAC, 11.5.3 NMAC, 11.5.5 NMAC, and 11.5.6 NMAC and within 29 CFR 1910 and 29 CFR 1926.
Enforcement of compliance is accomplished by work-site inspection and evaluation of safety and health programs. A citation may be issued for the violation of a standard and an employee exposed to safety and health hazards.
Employers are required to report to the Occupational Health and Safety Bureau:
- All work-related fatalities within 8 hours
- A COVID-19 related fatality when the case may have been contracted in the workplace
- All work-related inpatient hospitalizations, amputations and losses of an eye within 24 hours
- Positive COVID-19 cases among employees within four hours of learning of the positive case
Reporting injuries and fatalities
Employers may report injuries and fatalities as described above through an online form here.
You can also report injuries and fatalities by calling 1-877-610-OSHA (6742).
Reporting positive COVID-19 cases
New Mexico law requires employers to report positive COVID-19 cases within four hours of learning of the positive case.
Employers can report positive cases through the online form here.