There is no single retaliation statute. There are dozens, across two states and federal law, and the one that covers you is often the one you have never heard of. This is the index.
This page exists because retaliation law is scattered. There is no single statute. Instead there are dozens, in two states and in federal law, each protecting a particular kind of report by a particular kind of worker — and most people have never heard of the one that covers them.
So do not try to find yourself on this list. What decides your case is what you did, who you told, and what happened next. Matching that to a statute is this office's job.
Two things are worth knowing as you read. Not every law here gives you a lawsuit. Some are enforced only by a government agency, and a few provide no individual remedy at all. And several of these close very quickly — some of the federal ones in particular. That is the single best reason not to sit on it.
Nearly every New Mexico retaliation case this office handles runs on one or more of these, often stacked together.
| The law | Who it covers | What it protects |
|---|---|---|
| New Mexico Human Rights Act NMSA 1978 § 28-1-7(I) | Public and private employers with four or more employees, and any person acting for an employer | Opposing an unlawful discriminatory practice; filing a complaint, testifying, or participating in a proceeding under the Act |
| New Mexico Whistleblower Protection Act NMSA 1978 §§ 10-16C-1 to -6 | Public employers only — the State, counties, cities, school districts, public universities and hospitals. Covers anyone who works for or contracts with one. No minimum size | Communicating information about an unlawful or improper act; providing information to or testifying before a public body; objecting to or refusing to participate |
| Retaliatory discharge New Mexico common law — judge-made, not a statute | Any at-will employee, any employer, no size threshold | Being discharged for conduct protected by a clear public policy — refusing to break the law, reporting a danger, pursuing a right the law gives you |
Less common, but each one covers somebody, and the person it covers usually does not know it exists.
| The law | Who it covers | What it protects |
|---|---|---|
| Workers' compensation retaliation NMSA 1978 § 52-1-28.2 | Workers covered by the Workers' Compensation Act | Seeking workers' compensation benefits |
| Minimum Wage Act retaliation NMSA 1978 § 50-4-26.1 | An employer or any other person | Asserting a claim or right under the Act, assisting someone else to do so, or informing another person about employment rights |
| Healthy Workplaces Act NMSA 1978 § 50-17-8 | Private employers | Using paid sick leave, or raising concerns about the Act — to the employer, coworkers, an agency, or publicly |
| Fair Pay for Women Act NMSA 1978 § 28-23-5 | An employer or any other person | Asserting a claim or right under the Act, assisting another, or informing another about employment rights |
| Fraud Against Taxpayers Act NMSA 1978 § 44-9-11 | Employees of any employer | Lawfully disclosing information to a government or law enforcement agency, or taking part in an action under the Act |
| Medicaid False Claims Act NMSA 1978 § 27-14-12 | Any employee | Disclosing information to the department, or furthering an action under the Act |
| Public Employee Bargaining Act NMSA 1978 § 10-7E-19 | Public employers and their representatives | Signing or filing an affidavit, petition, grievance or complaint, or giving information or testimony. Enforced through the labor board rather than by a lawsuit |
| Occupational Health and Safety Act NMSA 1978 § 50-9-25 | Any person or employer | Filing a safety complaint, instituting a proceeding, or testifying. Enforced by the state, not by a private lawsuit — and the window to complain is short |
| Medical cannabis NMSA 1978 § 26-2B-9 | Applicants and employees who are qualified patients | Conduct allowed under the medical cannabis act, with exceptions for use or impairment at work and for safety-sensitive positions |
| Domestic abuse leave NMSA 1978 §§ 50-4A-3, 50-4A-7 | Covered employers | Taking leave provided by the Act |
| Caregiver Leave Act NMSA 1978 § 50-16-3(B) | Employers that provide sick leave | Using leave to care for a family member, filing a complaint, or cooperating in an investigation |
| Resident abuse reporting NMSA 1978 § 30-47-9(E) | Care facilities and their caregivers | Making a good-faith report of resident abuse, neglect, or exploitation |
| Jury service NMSA 1978 §§ 38-5-18, 38-5-19 | Employees of any employer | Responding to a summons, serving, or attending court |
| Settlement confidentiality limits NMSA 1978 § 50-4-36 | Private employers | Not a claim — a limit on what an employer may require. It restricts nondisclosure terms in settlements of harassment, discrimination and retaliation claims |
One correction worth making, because it comes up constantly: New Mexico's medical cannabis protection and its recreational cannabis law are not the same thing. The recreational statute expressly preserves an employer's right to maintain a zero-tolerance policy and to act on a positive test. A medical card is what creates protection, not legal recreational use.
Texas protects a narrower set of characteristics than New Mexico under its general discrimination statute, but it has several industry-specific protections that New Mexico does not.
| The law | Who it covers | What it protects |
|---|---|---|
| Texas Labor Code § 21.055 | Employers, labor unions, employment agencies | Opposing a discriminatory practice; making or filing a charge; filing a complaint; testifying, assisting, or participating in any manner in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing |
| Texas Labor Code § 451.001 | A person — broader than 'an employer' | Filing a workers' compensation claim in good faith; hiring a lawyer for the claim; instituting a proceeding; testifying or being about to testify |
| Health & Safety Code § 161.134 | Hospitals, mental health facilities, treatment facilities and home health agencies | Reporting a violation of law to a supervisor, an agency, or law enforcement |
| Health & Safety Code § 260A.014 | Long-term care institutions, assisted living facilities and related providers | Reporting abuse, neglect or exploitation of a resident |
| Occupations Code § 301.413 | Employers of nurses | Reporting in good faith under the Nursing Practice Act, or refusing to engage in conduct the nurse is required to refuse |
| Family Code § 261.110 | Employers of professionals required to report | Making a good-faith report of suspected child abuse or neglect |
| Civil Practice & Remedies Code § 122.002 | Employers of any size | Serving as a juror or grand juror |
| Labor Code § 411.082 | Employers | Reporting an occupational safety violation or hazard to a governmental agency |
| Local Government Code § 180.006 | Certain municipalities | Fire fighters and police officers who report a violation of law |
| Sabine Pilot exception Texas common law | Any at-will employee | Refusing to perform an act that carries criminal penalties — a deliberately narrow exception. More here |
Federal claims often sit alongside a state claim rather than replacing it. Which combination fits depends on the employer, the industry, and what you reported.
| The law | Who it covers | What it protects |
|---|---|---|
| Title VII § 704(a) 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-3(a) | Covered employers, employment agencies, labor organizations | Opposing an unlawful employment practice; making a charge, testifying, assisting, or participating |
| Americans with Disabilities Act 42 U.S.C. § 12203 | No person — broader than employers | Opposing an unlawful act or practice; and separately, coercing, intimidating, threatening or interfering with anyone exercising a right under the Act |
| Age Discrimination in Employment Act 29 U.S.C. § 623(d) | Covered employers | Opposing an unlawful practice; making a charge, testifying, assisting, or participating |
| Family and Medical Leave Act 29 U.S.C. § 2615 | Covered employers, and any person for the proceedings provision | Interfering with, restraining or denying the exercise or the attempt to exercise any FMLA right; and filing a charge, giving information, or testifying |
| Fair Labor Standards Act 29 U.S.C. § 215(a)(3) | Any person | Filing a complaint, instituting a proceeding, testifying, or serving on an industry committee. Oral complaints can qualify |
| Section 1981 42 U.S.C. § 1981 | Any party to a contract, including employment | Race discrimination in contracting — and the Supreme Court has held it reaches retaliation |
| Occupational Safety and Health Act 29 U.S.C. § 660(c) | Covered employers | Filing a safety complaint or exercising a right under the Act. Administered by OSHA, and the window is short |
| Sarbanes-Oxley § 806 18 U.S.C. § 1514A | Publicly traded companies and certain contractors | Reporting conduct the employee reasonably believes is securities fraud or related wrongdoing |
| False Claims Act 31 U.S.C. § 3730(h) | Employers, contractors and agents | Lawful acts in furtherance of a false claims action, or efforts to stop a violation |
| USERRA 38 U.S.C. § 4311 | All employers | Military service, and taking action to enforce USERRA rights |
| National Labor Relations Act 29 U.S.C. § 158 | Covered private employers | Filing charges or giving testimony, and concerted activity with coworkers about working conditions. Enforced through the labor board |
| Transportation, rail, aviation, nuclear, environmental and consumer-finance whistleblower statutes | Employers in those industries | Reporting safety or regulatory violations. These are administered by federal agencies and several of them close unusually fast |
Did you report something, ask for something, file something, or refuse something — and did your employer move against you afterward?
If the answer is yes, there is a conversation to have, and which of these laws applies is a problem for this office rather than for you.
Some are much shorter than people expect. The sooner you call, the more options are still open. Tell us what happened — free, confidential, and no obligation.