A. If an employer is hiring, the employer shall offer to rehire any worker who has stopped working due to a disablement for which he has received or is due to receive benefits under the New Mexico Occupational Disease Disablement Law and who applies for his pre-disablement job or modified job similar to the pre-disablement job, subject to the following conditions:

(1) the worker's treating health care provider certifies that the worker is fit to carry out the pre-disablement job or modified work similar to the pre-disablement job without significant risk of repeating or compounding the disablement; and

(2) the employer has the pre-disablement job or modified work available.

B. If an employer is hiring, that employer shall offer to rehire a worker who applies for any job that pays less than the pre-disablement job and who has stopped working due to a disablement for which he has received, or is due, benefits under the New Mexico Occupational Disease Disablement Law, provided that the worker is qualified for the job and provided that the worker's treating health care provider certifies that the worker is fit to carry out the job offered. Occupational disease disablement benefits of a worker hired pursuant to this subsection shall be reduced as provided in Section 52-1-25.1 NMSA 1978.

C. As used in this section, "rehire" includes putting the disabled worker back to active work, regardless of whether he was carried on the employer's payroll during the period of his inability to work.

History: Laws 1990 (2nd S.S.), ch. 2, § 48.

Effective dates. — Laws 1990 (2nd S.S.), ch. 2, § 153 made Laws 1990 (2nd S.S.), ch. 2, § 48 effective January 1, 1991.