Mexico's state-owned Pemex has resumed a restructuring drive that is eliminating dozens of jobs and lowering the grades and pay of other employees at its executive tower in Mexico City and across several departments nationwide, multiple sources say.
The measures affect employees including managers, technical specialists and other professionals, and who are not represented by the Mexican union of petroleum workers (STPRM).
The changes include the closure of entire management departments, while some employees have been dismissed and others moved to lower grades, one Pemex employee told Argus.
The layoffs and restructuring began last year, initially affecting legal and information technology departments, before slowing. It has now expanded nationally, although it is unclear how many people will be affected or what criteria Pemex is using, the national union of petroleum technicians and professionals (UNTYPP), which represents some of the employees but which does not have a collective contract with Pemex, told Argus.
Pemex is also lowering employees' job grades by between two and seven levels, with no clear criteria and little regard for seniority, another Pemex employee said.
Some employees have been moved from grade 39 to grade 30, for example, with their monthly pay cut by at least Ps70,000 ($3,800), the UNTYPP said.
Pemex uses numbered job grades to reflect hierarchy and pay. Levels 30-43 cover mid-level and specialized positions, while levels 44-48 include managers, deputy directors and directors.
Argus has reviewed two documents dated in October that record changes to individual employees' status. One states that an employee accepted the termination of their employment and agreed not to pursue claims against Pemex. It says the payment covering the termination would be delivered within 60 days.
The second document states that an employee accepted a new contract at grade 30 after their previous position was eliminated. It says no severance or other termination payment applies and that the employee's seniority would not be affected.
The UNTYPP said employees were being pressured and intimidated into signing documents accepting lower grades or termination. It said it had met with Pemex senior management, which told it the company lacked funds to grant an increase to technical and professional staff.
Pemex said in September that it had agreed with the STPRM union to a 4pc increase in ordinary wages and a 2pc increase in benefits. It also agreed to a 3.12pc rise in gasoline benefits. The UNTYPP said its members had not received a comparable increase.
Pemex did not immediately respond to an Argus request for comment.
Pemex's restructuring comes as the company continues to face severe financial pressure. It reported a net profit of Ps18bn in the second quarter of 2026 and financial debt of $77.5bn at the end of June, but its filings also showed negative working capital of Ps355bn and said the company continued to depend on government support to meet its financial obligations.
The current reorganization was formalized in May 2025, when its board approved a new organic statute that took effect on 1 June. Pemex said the changes were intended to integrate its operations vertically, eliminate overlapping roles and reduce administrative structures.
