Workforce Solutions secretary urges laid-off federal workers to file unemployment claims

SANTA FE — About 140 federal workers in New Mexico have so far filed unemployment claims after losing their jobs under President Donald Trump’s administration, state officials said Monday.

Cabinet secretaries held a news conference Monday at the Capitol in response to cuts by the White House’s Department of Government Efficiency to shrink federal agencies. Their main call to federal workers residing in New Mexico who lose their jobs: Apply for unemployment insurance.

There are about 30,000 federal workers in New Mexico, said Sarita Nair, secretary for the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions. Of that number, she said about 2,200 workers are in their probationary period, “which seems to be the initial round of these separations.”

She said DWS has received 140 claims since early February from New Mexicans who identified their last employer as a federal agency. About a third of those claims come from Albuquerque, she added.

“I think we’re going to see some big impacts (in) the major urban areas, as we would expect, but I think we’re going to see that ripple effect throughout the state,” she said.

New Mexico’s standard unemployment benefit is a percentage of a worker’s former average weekly wage for up to 26 weeks, Nair said, though every claim is determined on a case-by-case basis.

“Our biggest message here is, if we’ve lost your job with a federal agency or with a federal contractor, we want everyone to file an unemployment insurance claim,” she said. “Now, we don’t know if it will be granted or not, but that gives us the ability to connect with you.”

DWS also shares events like recruitment and jobs fairs via the contact information submitted with the claims.

“As difficult as this time can be, we want to help you find new opportunities and new beginnings,” Nair said.

Economic Development Department Secretary-designate Rob Black added that a lot of companies around the state are interested in growing their workforce, and EDD is working with those private employers to subsidize new worker wages through its Job Training Incentive Program.

“In Washington, D.C. right now, you have a lot of folks who are very interested in saying you’re fired. Here in New Mexico, we prefer to say you’re hired,” he said.

Black said he’s particularly concerned about the economic impact the National Parks Service and Forest Service cuts will cause in the state.

“If it means that Carlsbad Caverns has to be closed for multiple days a week, that’s going to impact the surrounding community of Carlsbad, the region, tourism coming to the state,” Black said. “We’re concerned that not only is it the impact on those individuals, which is severe, but it has a broader income impact and ripple across our economy.”

To prepare for the influx of unemployment claims, DWS is treating the situation like it would with natural disasters like fires or floods, Nair said. She said the agency has a specific team that deals with federal employment claims and is ready to ramp up staffing if needed.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham in a statement said the state wants to ensure “abruptly dismissed” federal workers have the appropriate resources and support to move forward.

“Our state agencies and partners are mobilizing to provide job assistance, education and training to help our workforce thrive,” she said.