ERS stands for Employees Retirement System of Texas. It is an organization that manages benefits for employees and retirees of State of Texas agencies and some higher education institutions. ERS works to support current and former state employees through the State of Texas defined benefit retirement plan. The State of Texas retirement plan is a defined benefit plan that provides eligible employees with a monthly annuity for life when the member becomes eligible and chooses to retire. In addition to mandatory participation in State of Texas retirement, eligible state agency employees are encouraged to contribute to personal retirement savings. To help them with that, ERS offers the Texa$averSM 401(k) / 457 Program, with low-cost traditional and Roth options. ERS also administers insurance benefits for employees, retirees, and eligible family members at participating universities and colleges.