ERS' 75th Anniversary - Collecting Memories

ERS 75th Anniversary logo September 2, 2022 marks 75 years since the Employees Retirement System first opened in 1947, with only three employees working out of a few rooms of a North Congress Avenue apartment building near the Capitol. In the 1940s, the Texas Legislature faced the challenge of attracting and retaining a qualified workforce. They worked with employee groups and voters to pave the way for retirement and insurance benefits to supplement salaries.  

As Texas has grown, so have the critical work of the state workforce, ERS and the value of state employees’ benefits. Decades later, retirement and health benefits account for roughly a third of the average state employee’s compensation. And agency leaders and employers say they are an important draw to public service.

If you have a memory related to your experience with ERS or the retirement and insurance benefits we administer, we’d love to hear it. It will help us piece together our story from many perspectives.

For example:

  • Tell us about the day you saw your retirement counselor, or the day you visited the Capitol to advocate for state employee benefits.
  • How did the benefits offered through ERS impact your decision to work (or keep working) for the State of Texas?
  • If you work or worked at ERS, do you have a story to share about the work, a customer or co-workers?
  • If you served on the ERS Board of Trustees, what was your experience like?

Share your story for ERS’ 75th anniversary.

If you have a question or comment about your current benefits or need assistance with an issue, please see the Contact ERS page for ERS’ customer service phone number and email.

Please click the Submit button only once. It may take several seconds before confirmation that your email has been submitted, but you don’t need to click Submit more than once.