Quick Hits
- NOM-035, published in 2018, established Mexico’s first explicit regulatory framework addressing psychosocial risk factors and employer obligations related to employees’ physical and mental well-being in the workplace.
- The standard catalyzed a series of labor reforms including expanded vacation entitlements, remote work regulations, recognition of mental health disorders as occupational diseases, the Chair Law requiring workplace seating, and the gradual reduction of the workweek to forty hours by 2030.
- Employers in Mexico face growing regulatory and operational challenges as the labor framework increasingly prioritizes employee safety, physical health, mental well-being, and work-life balance in line with the principles first advanced by NOM-035.
Although NOM-035 may initially have appeared to be an isolated regulatory measure, its impact has been far-reaching and profound. Its underlying principles and objectives have substantially influenced the development of various labor reforms and the enactment of new regulations, particularly those aimed at protecting mental health, preventing psychosocial risk factors, and promoting healthier and more balanced work environments for employees.
In October 2018, the Official Mexican Standard NOM-035-STPS-2018, Psychosocial Risk Factors at Work: Identification, Analysis, and Prevention (NOM-035), was published in the Official Gazette of the Federation (Diario Oficial de la Federación, or DOF). This regulatory instrument sparked, for the first time in the Mexican labor context, an explicit discussion regarding psychosocial factors affecting employees’ health and well-being, while establishing specific employer obligations concerning prevention, workplace safety, and both physical and mental well-being. The issuance of NOM-035 marked a significant shift in Mexican labor regulation by recognizing that conditions such as work-related stress, workload, work-life balance, and the organizational environment are integral components of occupational health. Beyond its immediate regulatory scope, NOM-035 paved the way for a broader understanding of workplace health and laid the foundation for subsequent reforms aimed at protecting the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of workers in Mexico.
One of the first developments reflecting this regulatory evolution was the enactment of the Dignified Vacation Reform (Vacaciones Dignas), which took effect in January 2023 and amended the vacation provisions of the Federal Labor Law. This reform increased the minimum vacation entitlement from six to twelve consecutive days during an employee’s first year of service and established progressive increases based on seniority. The reform represented a significant advancement in labor rights in Mexico by bringing to the forefront the need to ensure a proper balance between personal and professional life, based on the recognition that the previous vacation entitlement was insufficient to provide meaningful rest, physical recovery, and overall employee well-being. As evidenced by this reform, the concept of a more balanced working life, advanced by NOM-035, once again became a central consideration in the legislative agenda.
Similarly, the regulation of remote work is closely linked to the legislative changes incorporated into Mexico’s labor framework, particularly those aligned with the principles and objectives of NOM-035. In this regard, remote work seeks to promote a better balance between employees’ personal and professional lives while maintaining compliance with both existing and newly established employer obligations concerning workplace health and safety. The objective is to ensure that employees have appropriate conditions under which to perform their duties within this work arrangement, taking into consideration the standards and principles established by NOM-035.
Subsequently, the Federal Labor Law was amended once again to incorporate work-related mental health disorders into the official table of occupational diseases, including conditions such as anxiety, insomnia, stress, and depression. This amendment represented a substantive step forward in recognizing mental health as an essential component of both occupational health and social security. It opened the door for such conditions to be classified by the Mexican Social Security Institute (Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS)) as occupational risks and, consequently, allowed employees access to the prevention, treatment, and protection mechanisms available under Mexico’s social security system. Naturally, this development also carries significant implications for employers, particularly with respect to the cost of social security contributions.
In the same vein, the enactment of the Chair Law (Ley Silla) may be understood as part of the progressive impact that NOM-035 has had on workplace well-being initiatives. While the requirement to provide employees with seating during the workday may appear, at first glance, to be relatively minor, experience derived from the implementation of the seven-factor assessment questionnaire required by this reform has shown that many workers in Mexico face high levels of risk associated with prolonged standing. One of the primary objectives of the Chair Law is to reduce the risks associated with physical fatigue resulting from extended periods of standing. Beyond its physical consequences, such fatigue may also contribute to mental health conditions, including stress and insomnia.
With respect to the reduction of the workweek, the reform now forms part of Mexico’s legal framework and provides for a gradual implementation process under which the standard workweek will be reduced by two hours per year, with the objective of reaching a forty-hour workweek by 2030. This transition reflects a significant transformation in labor relations in Mexico, focused on strengthening work-life balance without affecting employees’ wages, benefits, or other labor rights. Furthermore, the reform reinforces the broader trend within the Mexican labor system toward more sustainable work arrangements, placing the protection of employees’ physical and emotional well-being at the center of public policy.
Against this backdrop, employers will continue to face significant regulatory and operational challenges as the Mexican government adopts and implements reforms that increasingly prioritize employee safety, physical health, and mental well-being in workplace environments.
Ogletree Deakins’ Mexico City and Monterrey offices will continue to monitor developments and will post updates on the Cross-Border, Leaves of Absence, Mexico, Wage and Hour, and Workplace Safety and Health blogs as additional information becomes available.
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