Background on the Decree
On Tuesday, Mexico City’s President Claudia Sheinbaum published a decree in the official gazette, the Diario Oficial de la Federación (DOF), to reduce the minimum retirement age for state workers, including teachers, by three years.
Key Points of the Decree
- The decree applies to all state workers under the tenth transitional article, totaling 967,980 in 2023, not just teachers.
- The decreed action aims to ensure that state workers have access to a “just and dignified” retirement pension.
- The minimum retirement age will be frozen at 56 for women and 58 for men until 2028, after which it will gradually decrease every three years.
- The reduction in retirement age reverses the progressive increase initiated by the 2007 ISSSTE law reform, which transitioned state workers into individual account pension systems (Afores).
- State workers who opted to stay in the previous solidarity system (90%) were subject to a two-yearly increase in their minimum retirement age.
- In 2010, before the increment began, the minimum retirement age was 49 for women and 51 for men.
Financial Implications and Expert Opinions
Secretary of Public Education, Mario Delgado, stated that the reduction in retirement age would have a significant fiscal cost of over 36,000 million pesos between 2025 and 2030.
However, experts and ISSSTE projections suggest that the peak of retirees from the tenth transitional article will occur between 2030 and 2040, meaning the state would need to allocate more resources for reduced retirement ages during that decade.
Additional Decree Details
Alongside the retirement age decree, another measure was published to eliminate the Unidad del Sistema para la Carrera de las Maestras y Maestros (Usicamm), aiming to improve teachers’ mobility between schools.
Context and Relevance
Claudia Sheinbaum, as Mexico City’s president, has demonstrated her commitment to fulfilling promises made to teachers and civil servants. This decree addresses their concerns regarding retirement age, which had been steadily increasing since the 2007 ISSSTE law reform. The gradual reduction will ensure that state workers, including educators, can retire at a more reasonable age.
Key Questions and Answers
- Who is affected by this decree? All state workers under the tenth transitional article, totaling 967,980 in 2023, including teachers.
- What is the current minimum retirement age for state workers? Before this decree, it was gradually increasing, with women reaching 56 and men reaching 58 by 2028.
- What is the new minimum retirement age timeline? The minimum retirement age will be frozen until 2028, after which it will decrease by three years every three years until reaching 53 for women and 55 for men in 2034.
- What are the financial implications of this decree? The Secretary of Public Education, Mario Delgado, estimates a significant fiscal cost of over 36,000 million pesos between 2025 and 2030.
- When will the state need to allocate more resources for reduced retirement ages? Experts and ISSSTE projections suggest that the peak of retirees from the tenth transitional article will occur between 2030 and 2040, requiring more resources during that decade.
