By Michelle Granger, Contract Action Team Lead, NMSU-NEA; HELU-NM Delegate
We know that current attacks on higher education are really attacks on the middle class and the workers who support our economy. It’s a hard time to be a worker in higher education. But when things get difficult, opportunities are born! In New Mexico, HELU has given us a fresh perspective and new paths for advocacy even in the face of such unprecedented times.
Since April 2026, when our coalition first met, Higher Ed Labor United New Mexico (HELU-NM) has been collaborating, sharing resources, and fighting for fair working conditions at our New Mexico colleges and universities. We collectively represent over 12,000 workers from every job type and series in New Mexico higher education.
The first fight we are undertaking is over healthcare insurance premiums. In New Mexico, the only state employees who haven’t been afforded 80/20 healthcare insurance premium splits with their employers are workers in higher education. As insurance premiums skyrocket, higher ed workers are struggling to pay for insurance at the premium splits currently offered by the state. To address this inequity, HELU-NM has been fighting for 80/20 at the New Mexico State Legislature.
Our HELU-NM coalition worked throughout the spring and summer, meeting with members of the New Mexico Legislative Finance Committee (LFC), attending all interim LFC sessions and giving public comments whenever available. We are also building our profile within the Legislative Education Study Committee (LESC) and our state-wide political parties. Through this work, we have forged bonds and friendships in the fire of legislator meetings and long collaborative sessions. One of the most rewarding parts of this work has been the collaboration with like-minded folks from different universities, campuses, and job types. Through this work, we’ve been sharing strategies around collective bargaining and motivating our locals’ members.
Our campaign really turned up the heat this September when we hosted a virtual, statewide, Higher Ed Healthcare Town Hall. Over 100 higher ed workers (and even some state legislators) from across New Mexico, attended. It was an exciting moment! We had dozens of folks speak to both the disparity and burden healthcare costs are bringing to our higher ed community. Some in our coalition have no employer-sponsored coverage at all. And some who have worked in higher ed for most of their lives are paying as much as 60% of their premiums – which can total more than $17,000 a year! But instead of living in isolation and worry over these rising costs and the injustice of this burden, we came together to demand a solution.
The work hasn’t stopped there, we are just getting started. We have a big fight at the NM State Legislature ahead of us. But none of this would be possible without this coalition. We can really punch above our weight when we come together! No longer will colleges and job classes be pitted against each other for funding and resources. We will not stay in our silos while the federal and state governments determine our future in spreadsheets and closed door budget meetings. We will work together and build our power as a unified entity. You should see the look on the faces of politicians when they understand the scope and power of this coalition. It’s a game changer for New Mexico higher ed and we are grateful to be in this fight!