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Retired CFE and Pemex workers reject ‘golden pensions’ label and protest cuts
🇲🇽 Mexico /Culture & Society

Retired CFE and Pemex workers reject ‘golden pensions’ label and protest cuts

From El Universal · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

In-depth Sources not specified Ongoing story
  • Hundreds of retired CFE workers protested outside Mexico’s Supreme Court against pension reductions linked to a reform targeting high public-sector pensions.
  • Retirees traveled from across the country and said the cuts threaten their ability to pay for medical treatment and other expenses.
  • The reform caps pensions for public officials at half the president’s monthly salary, about 70,000 pesos based on President Claudia Sheinbaum’s reported net salary.

At 71, Jorge Salcedo walked more than two kilometers through the heat to protest outside Mexico’s Supreme Court. He had retired from the Federal Electricity Commission after 31 years of work, but said the pension he depends on has been reduced.

Salcedo joined hundreds of CFE retirees who blocked the street in Mexico City. All were over 60, and many had traveled by buses they rented themselves from different parts of the country. They chanted: “I did not steal, I did not lie. I did not betray anyone, I only worked.”

The protest marked the fifth demonstration in Mexico City against a recent reform to Article 127. Demonstrations have also taken place across the country, from Baja California to Yucatán and from Michoacán to Veracruz. The reform sought to end what it called “golden pensions” in the public sector by preventing any official from receiving a pension greater than half the president’s salary.

I did not steal, I did not lie. I did not betray anyone, I only worked.

— CFE retireesThe protesters chanted the line during their demonstration outside Mexico’s Supreme Court.

Salcedo said he discovered the reduction in his bank account in the second half of April. He retired from the CFE in 2011 after serving as a deputy manager. He also has a tumor that has damaged his tongue and makes it difficult for him to speak. His wife has lupus and could not attend, so he protested on behalf of both of them.

“I cannot stop my treatment, it is not possible, and it is an injustice because it is an acquired right,” Salcedo said. He pays 370,000 pesos a year for medical insurance on credit, and said the pension cut left him unable to cover the cost.

I cannot stop my treatment, it is not possible, and it is an injustice because it is an acquired right.

— Jorge SalcedoSalcedo explained why he was protesting the reduction to his pension while facing medical expenses.
About this summary

Originally published by El Universal in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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