Are licensed/certified public school employees in New Mexico entitled to a (thirty) 30-minute duty free lunch?
Teachers, Yes. Others, not necessarily, depending on contract language or local policy. Below are explanations to help understand the “Yes” for teachers and the Maybe answer for other personnel: Teachers The Legislature passed the Public School Reform Act of 1986, granting teachers a 30-minute duty free lunch. From New Mexico Statutes 22-10A-20 NMSA 1978 L. Teachers shall not be required to perform noninstructional duties except in emergency situations as defined by the state board. For purposes of this subsection, “noninstructional duties” means noon hall duty, noon ground duty and noon cafeteria duty. From the New Mexico Administrative Code (the only reference to 30 minutes; the Department of Education in 1988 interpreted this to mean, teachers’ duty lunch period must occur while students are at lunch): 6.30.2.10 H (3) The student lunch period each day must be at least thirty (30) minutes. Lunch recess shall not be counted as part of the instructional day. In January 1988, the (SDE)
