As used in the Promoting Financial Independence for Victims of Domestic Abuse Act:

A. "domestic abuse" has the same meaning as it does in the Family Violence Protection Act [Chapter 40, Article 13 NMSA 1978];

B. "domestic abuse leave" means intermittent paid or unpaid leave time for up to fourteen days in any calendar year, taken by an employee for up to eight hours in one day, to obtain or attempt to obtain an order of protection or other judicial relief from domestic abuse or to meet with law enforcement officials, to consult with attorneys or district attorneys' victim advocates or to attend court proceedings related to the domestic abuse of an employee or an employee's family member;

C. "employee" means a person who is employed by an employer;

D. "employer" includes a person, a firm, a partnership, an association, a corporation, a receiver or an officer of the court of New Mexico, a state agency, or a unit of local government or a school district;

E. "family member" means a minor child of the employee or a person for whom the employee is a legal guardian;

F. "order of protection" means a court order granted pursuant to the Family Violence Protection Act; and

G. "retaliation" means an adverse action against an employee, including threats, reprisals or discrimination for engaging in the protected activity of taking domestic abuse leave.

History: Laws 2009, ch. 14, § 2.

Effective dates. — Laws 2009, ch. 14, § 9 made Laws 2009, ch. 14, § 2 effective July 1, 2009.