March 13, 2026 — It was almost a year into the first term of Governor Andrew Cuomo, and two years after the institution of Tier 5 in 2010, that the former governor pushed for a new tier of pension benefits. Tier 6 went into effect for anyone hired by New York State on or after April 1, 2012. It further diminished retirement benefits for state workers at a time when New York was already seeing a loss of talent at agencies across the state.
Just like Governor David Paterson before him and every governor who established a new pension tier, Cuomo cited high costs and deficits as the reason to further claw back state worker benefits.
PEF members — who had just ratified a contract that gave back $230 million over four years in the form of no wage increases, pay delays, and higher health insurance costs — were now faced with layoffs, merging agencies, privatization and the introduction of Tier 6.
“The governor’s new Tier 6 proposal is nothing more than a false choice of accepting severely reduced pension benefits or joining an inefficient 401k-style pension system,” former PEF President Ken Brynien said at the time. “It would force public employees into a pension gamble that virtually guarantees a lower level of benefits. This proposal is similar to the misguided proposals for reforming Social Security proposed by former President George W. Bush.”
Despite PEF and other unions pushing Governor Cuomo to reconsider, he signed Tier 6 into law.
Today, about 60% of state employees (780,000) are enrolled in Tier 6. Fourteen years after its creation, Tier 6 has proven to be a failure. New York State has thousands of job openings, staffing shortages at every agency, and workers in Tier 4 and below are retiring faster than they can be replaced. In addition, younger workers can earn much more in the private sector, and Tier 6 is not enough of an incentive for them to consider public service. That’s why the calls to “Fix Tier 6” from PEF and dozens of other unions are louder than ever.
Editor’s Note: State lawmakers and Governor Hochul are under pressure to act during this budget cycle to make meaningful reforms to Tier 6. Please send a letter to your elected representatives today!
