Restaurant manager standing in front of team of chefs smiling atListen to those who are fighting for New Mexico’s jobs! While our New Mexico economy circles the drain, many legislators ignore the very people who have the ability to add jobs to our economy.

Every year business groups gather in Santa Fe, at the legislature, with lists of good legislation that will spur economic growth only to be thwarted by legislators who have never created a job.

We need to place some trust in each other. Trust that employers know what we are talking about when it comes to job creation and we will trust that legislators are doing the very best for New Mexico. We all have New Mexico’s best interest at heart.

These legislators don’t want New Mexico to fail, they just don’t know what they don’t know. Therefore they make decisions not to pass good, job creating legislation with little or no real knowledge of what it takes to create a job or run a business.

What if New Mexico were to pass all the legislation suggested by business organizations? What would it cost NM? We don’t know because we’ve never tried it. It would be a big signal to companies that we are ready to make the changes necessary to make them feel welcome. Michigan has done it. Why can’t we?

There are simple legislative fixes that would make NM a safe place to do business and not cost the state any money–fixes to Work Comp and Unemployment systems, Right-to-Work, and Preemption on employment law, just to name a few.

These job-creating ideas are not experimental nor are they new. Other states have implemented them and in comparison, other states are doing much better than New Mexico. New Mexico refuses to see how a statewide preemption of employment law might make a company deciding to come to our state more comfortable that they are making a good decision with their company’s resources.

Legislators refuse to understand that we are in competition with states that give employees the choice of paying union dues, not mandating them. Yet, we refuse to listen to the job creators.

Wake up New Mexico! People are leaving the state in droves. Businesses are deciding to put their businesses in Dallas and Phoenix. For crying out loud! Have you been to Dallas or Phoenix in the summer? Dallas is flat, hot and humid and Phoenix is unbearable with temps over 100 degrees for four straight months. New Mexico offers so much more quality of life for businesses except for that little problem of consistency, fairness and support of the business community by everyone, especially the legislature.

New Mexico is Einstein’s definition of insanity. We keep doing the same thing over-and-over expecting different results. We continue to elect these same legislators who would rather see New Mexico take the final flush than try something that job creators suggest. We will continue to lose people, jobs and our ability to resuscitate the economy until these legislators make different choices on behalf of the citizens.

Success begins with change, and change begins by listening.  Listen to your job creators.