1. Am I eligible for Membership?
If your employer is signatory to a collective agreement requiring contributions to be made to the Plan, you will automatically be included as a Member of the Plan
2. Am I required or permitted to contribute to the Plan?
It depends on whether your collective agreement requires you to contribute or not. Please note that you are not allowed to make “voluntary contributions” to the Plan. The entire cost of your benefits and administration is financed by the contributions made to the Plan and the earnings on the invested contributions.
3. What does the employer pay?
Each employer makes contributions to the Plan according to the provisions of the relevant collective agreement.
4. Are the contributions made by the employer taxable to me?
No. These contributions are not added to your income and, therefore, are not taxable.
5. Is my personal RRSP affected?
Yes. Contributions made to any registered Plan reduce personal RRSP contribution room.
6. May I withdraw any of the contributions made to the Plan made on my behalf?
No. You are not permitted to withdraw or have a refund of any contributions made to the Plan on your behalf.
7. What happens if I transfer to another job with an employer not covered by a collective agreement?
If you transfer to a job so that your employer no longer makes contributions to the Plan on your behalf, you will not accrue further credited service under the Plan after the date of your transfer.
8. What happens if I return to work with my employer or a different employer participating in the Plan after my pension has commenced?
Your pension benefit from the Plan will be suspended until you retire again and you will earn further pension credits under the Plan during the period you return to work. When you ultimately retire, you will receive your original pension benefit, plus an additional pension benefit based on the period of service after you return to work.
9. What is the normal form of pension?
The normal form of pension benefit provides monthly payments to you payable for your retired lifetime ending on the first of the month in which your death occurs, but guaranteed for a minimum of five years (i.e. 60 monthly payments). This means that the pension benefit is payable as long as you live and, if your death occurs before all the guaranteed payments have been made, then pension payments would continue to be paid to your beneficiary for the remainder of the five year guarantee period. However, if you had a spouse at the time your pension benefit commences to be paid, both the Plan and the pension law require that the pension be paid in a joint and survivorship form which continues to your spouse after your death, for the rest of the spouse's life, in an amount not less than 60% of the pension you were receiving. The normal form of pension described above will be actuarially reduced to reflect this requirement. A spouse may waive rights to this entitlement by completing a waiver form, in which case you may receive the pension in the normal form or in an optional form and your spouse is not entitled to this survivor benefit.
10. What is an optional form of pension?
If you elect one of the optional forms, the amount of pension will be adjusted to reflect the value of the option chosen. The amounts payable under these optional forms will be the actuarial equivalent of the amount payable in the normal form. This means that, for some options, the initial amount of pension benefit you are entitled to receive in the normal form may be reduced to reflect the fact that a benefit will continue to your spouse, rather than ceasing on your death, or will continue to a beneficiary if you die before expiration of the guarantee period. The options are:
- Lifetime Pension with a Guarantee Period :A monthly pension benefit is payable as long as you live. However, should you die before the end of the guaranteed period of 10 years, the monthly pension benefit will continue to your spouse, beneficiary or estate for the balance of the guaranteed period.
- Joint and Survivorship Pension: A monthly pension benefit is payable to you for your lifetime. After your death, a monthly pension benefit of the amount that you had been receiving will be paid to your surviving spouse for as long as he or she lives.
- Integration with Old Age Security/Canada Pension Plan: If your pension commences before age 65, your pension may be increased in the months before age 65 and decreased after age 65 when Old Age Security/Canada Pension Plan benefits start.
- Lifetime Pension without a Guarantee Period: A monthly pension benefit is payable only during your lifetime and will cease on your death without any guarantee period.
11. Can I change the form of pension I have chosen?
Yes, provided you do so before your first pension payment has been made. Once your pension has started, you will not be allowed to change your option.
12. If I separate from my spouse before I retire, what happens to my pension?
Your pension could be considered a family asset and, as such, the value or benefits could be divided under the provisions of the family law legislation of your province of residence, subject to the terms of the Plan.
13. If I separate from my spouse after I retire, what happens to my pension?
Same answer as that to Question 12, except that if your spouse is designated as beneficiary, you cannot change such designation.
14. Can I commute, surrender, assign, charge or create a security in my pension benefit or pension benefit credit?
No. You cannot commute or surrender a pension benefit under this Plan during your lifetime except in circumstances permitted by the Plan or the Pension Benefits Standards Act, 1985 (Canada) (e.g. small pension and shortened life expectancy). You cannot assign, charge or create a security in your pension benefit or pension benefit credit except in circumstances permitted by the Plan or thePension Benefits Standards Act, 1985 (Canada)(e.g. on a marriage breakdown).
15. When does my membership in the Plan terminate?
Your membership in the Plan will terminate on:
- the first day of the 12th month after your last day of work
- or longer if certain conditions in the Plan are satisfied, e.g. your employment is not reinstated within 24 months after lay-off
- or your death
- or your retirement
16. What if I terminate employment with one employer covered under the Plan and start working with another Plan employer?
If you move from one Plan employer to another Plan employer, your membership in the Plan will be continued, providing it has not terminated for any of the reasons listed under Question 15 above.
17. Will benefits be paid if I die before I retire?
Yes, if you are a Member of the Plan or if you are entitled to deferred pension benefit under the Plan at the date of your death. If your membership in the Plan terminates and then you die before retirement, your spouse or beneficiary should contact the Plan’s administrative agent for details regarding any death benefit payable.
18. Who will the benefits be paid to?
The benefit will be paid to your spouse (unless he/she has previously waived his/her rights in writing). If you do not have a spouse, there is no pre-retirement death benefit payable but the contributions made by you will be refunded, with interest, to your designated beneficiary or estate, as the case may be.
19. What happens if I die after I retire?
In the event that you die after you have started to receive a monthly pension, your spouse or designated beneficiary may receive the balance of any unpaid monthly instalments based on the form of pension you elected when you retired. If the beneficiary is your estate, your estate may receive a lump sum equal to the present value of any unpaid instalments.
20. What happens to my pension if I become disabled?
If you become totally and permanently disabled after you have attained age 40 and completed 10 or more years of Credited Service in the Plan and have satisfied the Pension Committee that you have such disability, you will receive a monthly pension benefit based on your Credited Service to your date of disability, commencing on the later of the first day of the month following your disability and the date of receipt of your completed application by the Plan’s administrative agent. Payment of your disability pension will terminate in the manner provided in the Plan. The Pension Committee may be satisfied that you have become totally and permanently disabled if you are so certified by a medical practitioner who is acceptable to the Pension Committee or if you are entitled to disability benefits under the Canada Pension Plan or if you are entitled to a benefit payable for long term or total and permanent disability under a health and welfare plan or a group insurance program. If you apply for disability pension, the Pension Committee may require you to submit to an examination by an accredited diagnostic medical clinic. If you are receiving disability pension, the Pension Committee may require you to submit to such re-examination from time to time.
21. How do I apply for my pension?
You must complete an application and submit proof of your age. Depending on the option chosen, proof of your spouse’s age is also required. A benefit cannot be paid until a written application has been made by you to the Plan’s administrative agent.
22. How is the Plan administered?
The Pension Committee has complete authority in administering the Plan. The Pension Committee is responsible for the design, administration and operation of the Plan, including the receipt of contributions, payment of benefits, and the investment and maintenance of the Pension Trust Fund. In order to carry out these responsibilities, the Pension Committee has appointed a trust company which has custody of the pension fund assets, investment managers who direct investments, an investment consultant who monitors the investments, an actuary who advises on the design and operation of the Plan, an administrative agent to accept and record all information on contributions and credited service and to maintain clerical records pertaining to each Member, and auditors to audit and prepare the financial statements. The Pension Committee may appoint other professionals, such as legal advisors, whose services may be required. The Pension Committee may amend the Plan terms, appoint new advisors and change the custodian of the Plan assets. All contributions will be paid into the Pension Trust Fund, and all benefits and expenses of operating the Plan will be paid from the Pension Trust Fund.
23. Can the Plan be terminated?
The Plan may be terminated by the Pension Committee. On such termination, the Pension Trust Fund will be used to pay pension benefits according to the terms of the Plan and the remaining assets will be dealt with according to the terms of the Plan. If the Pension Trust Fund is insufficient to pay all of the pension and other benefits under the Plan, the amount of pension and other benefits payable to each person entitled thereto will be reduced on a pro rata basis.
24. Who can I designate as my beneficiary?
Any person or persons, or your estate, can be a designated beneficiary. However, if you have a spouse at the relevant time, any benefits which become payable on your death are paid to your spouse (unless he/she has previously waived his or her rights in writing). The payment of benefits to your spouse is not affected if you fail to designate him or her as a beneficiary.
25. How do I designate or change my beneficiary?
You must complete and deliver to the Pension Committee the appropriate form, which is available from the Plan’s administrative agent.
26. What happens if I do not designate a beneficiary?
If you do not have a spouse and you do not designate a beneficiary, any benefits that become payable on your death will be paid to your estate.
27. Can I change my beneficiary after I retire?
Yes, provided the named beneficiary is not your spouse, or the form of pension is not a joint and survivorship annuity.