SPRINGFIELD – An increasing number of Illinois state workers are rushing to retire, according to the State Employees Retirement System, driven by worries about the state budget and likely changes to unfunded public worker pension systems, among other things.

More than 4,000 state workers will retire in the fiscal year that ends June 30, SERS Executive Secretary Tim Blair said. That’s up more than 40 percent from last year’s roughly 2,750. SERS oversees pension systems for many state workers.

“We are definitely seeing an uptick,” Blair told the Mattoon Journal-Gazette. “There hasn’t been any slowdown.”