N.M. Stat. § 33-3-24
The sheriff of any county or the jail administrator of any jail with the approval of the board of county commissioners and the governing body of the municipality, as applicable, may establish a prisoner-release program in accordance with the provisions of Sections 33-2-43 and 33-2-44 NMSA 1978. The labor and industrial commission shall exercise the same supervision over conditions of employment for prisoners working under a prisoner-release program as it does over conditions of employment for free persons. A prisoner working under a prisoner-release program is not entitled to any benefits under the Unemployment Compensation Law [Chapter 51 NMSA 1978] during the term of his sentence. No prisoner involved in a prisoner-release program is an agent, employee or involuntary servant of a county jail while attending school, working in private business or going to or from such assignment.
NMS § 33-3-24