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New Mexico

New Mexico governor supports $15 minimum wage for school workers

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is behind the initiative, spokesperson said

Associated Press
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New Mexico Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham now backs a $15 minimum wage for school workers.

"I did get word five minutes before this hearing that the executive does support the $15 an hour minimum," state Education Secretary Kurt Steinhaus told legislators during a joint meeting of the state House and Senate on Friday.

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A budget proposal from Lujan Grisham to the Legislature earlier this month had called for a $15 minimum wage for state workers, but not for school workers.

Kindergarten teacher Lilia Matos and her student Jesus Mendez stand outside their classroom on the first day of in-person learning at Heliotrope Avenue Elementary School.  (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

In a call with reporters on Jan. 7 touting a proposal to raise licensed teacher salaries by as much as 22%, Lujan Grisham said that school districts already had the capability to fund $15-per-hour salaries saying: "It is within the reach of the school districts. And frankly, they just need to do it."

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Lujan Grisham spokeswoman Nora Sackett confirmed the governor's support for the $15 minimum Friday.

Inflation, the COVID-19 pandemic, and other stresses on the labor market are driving wage growth including in low-wage jobs that schools rely on to run, from bus drivers to cafeteria workers to custodians.

In Santa Fe, a sign at McDonald's advertises $14-per-hour starting pay, higher than the lowest paid part-time positions in local cafeterias in the local school district, just over $12 per hour.

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Democratic Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth has said he supports the $15 minimum wage for public employees in state government and at public schools.