SAN DIEGO — For years, companies have been chipping away at workers’ pensions. Now, two California cities might help pave the way for governments to follow suit.

Voters in San Diego and San Jose, the nation’s eighth- and 10th-largest cities, overwhelmingly approved ballot measures last week to roll back municipal retirement benefits — and not just for future hires but for current employees. From coast to coast, the pensions of current public employees have long been generally considered untouchable.

“Other states are going to have to pay attention,” said Amy Monahan, a law professor at the University of Minnesota.

In San Jose, current employees face salary cuts of up to 16 percent to fund the city’s pension plan. If they choose, they can instead accept a lower benefit and see the current retirement age of 55 raised to 57 for police officers and firefighters, and to 62 for other employees.

The voter-approved measure in San Diego imposes a six-year freeze on the pay levels used to determine pension benefits for current employees, a move that is expected to save nearly $1 billion over 30 years. Public employee unions have sued to block the measure, saying City Hall failed to negotiate the ballot’s wording as required by state law.