Currently as CUPW members who work at Canada Post we have a defined benefit pension plan. WHAT IS A DEFINED BENEFIT PENSION PLAN? A defined benefit (DB) pension plan is a plan in which the monthly retirement pension is determined by a set formula, rather than depending on investment returns or the health of the plan. The formula for the Canada Post Pension Plan is determined by our years of service and our earnings in the best five years of consecutive service. For part-time and RSMC workers, years of service are seen as a ratio of full-time hours.
The federal government has only partially protected postal services in the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). Canada took an Annex I reservation rather than a stronger Annex II reservation. An Annex II reservation would have protected existing or future non-conforming measures and allowed for future policy changes. For example, an Annex II reservation would have given the government the policy flexibility to reverse postal deregulation that is not working.
Before going over the recent developments regarding our pension plan, I would like to remind you of the principles that guide the Union in all of its discussions regarding the plan, whether with Canada Post or with the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI). These principles are as follows:
The Facts Contrary to what you might have read on social media and elsewhere, the Union is not in consultation with the Corporation to deal with problems, real or imagined, facing the CPC pension plan or the Corporation’s inability to meet its funding obligations. Further, the Union’s participation in the Federal Government’s consultation on Target Benefit Plans in the federal sector is only tangentially connected to our concerns over Canada Post’s plans for our Defined Benefit Plan.
In a letter dated February 17, 2014, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) wrote the following in response to our letter dated January 29th: “Canada Post has recently offered a meeting with all collective bargaining agents and with the Pension Advisory Council that will cover the topics of funding relief, financial projections for the Plan as a result of the relief, and Canada Post’s role as plan administrator.”
After weeks of phone calls, letters and meetings between CUPW, Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) and Canada Post, OSFI has agreed to lift the restrictions on payments of commuted values from the Canada Post Pension Plan. They have imposed new restrictions which will allow members to withdraw the commuted value of their pension, but force Canada Post to pay a deposit of 40% of each withdrawal into the Canada Post Pension Plan.
The Canada Post Pension Plan has been notified by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) that the administrator may not transfer moneys out of the pension plan or purchase immediate or deferred life annuities without the prior consent of OSFI. OSFI is the independent regulator who oversees pension plans to ensure compliance with the Pension benefits Standards Act (PBSA) and its regulations.
On November 27, 2013 the Union was notified by Canada Post management that they are once again implementing a unilateral increase in pension contributions for employees. According to the notice the employee contribution rate will increase another 0.6 per cent of pensionable earnings. This is in addition to the 0.7 per cent increase that was unilaterally implemented by CPC effective July 1, 2013.
The time has come to ensure workers have more financial security when they retire. An expanded Canada Pension Plan/Quebec Pension Plan (CPP/QPP) would do just that. Small increases in contributions would effectively double CPP/QPP benefits upon retirement.
Support Postal Banking - Download and Sign the Petition
Canada needs a postal bank. Thousands of rural towns and villages in our country do not have a bank, but many of them have a post office that could provide financial services. As well, nearly two million Canadians desperately need an alternative to payday lenders. A postal bank could be that alternative. Download and sign the petition urging the Government of Canada to instruct Canada Post to add postal banking, with a mandate for financial inclusion.
During the last round of negotiations, the Union and Canada Post agreed to switch from current payroll to arrears payroll for full-time Urban Operations members. This change will occur in January 2018 and will not impact the amount of your pay.
Geneviève, Hélène, Annie, Nathalie, Barbara, Anne-Marie, Maud, Maryse, Sonia, Michèle, Barbara, Annie, Anne-Marie, Maryse. These are the names of 14 young women aged 20 to 31 whom we will never forget. December 6, 1989, is a day that will forever remain engraved in our collective memory. That day, twenty-eight years ago, the horrible face of misogyny reared its ugly head when 14 women were massacred simply because they were women.
On October 16, Canada Post’s pay equity consultant issued, a very disappointing report, which states that there is no wage disparity between RSMCs and urban letter carriers. After reading this report, we initiated the negotiations period set out in the memorandum of agreement on the pay equity study.
It hurts to work at the post office. Overburdening and lack of respect contribute to a very stressful workplace and life. Sometimes the pain of these injuries are not visual. We carry physical or emotional pain and get through the day best we can. We are not alone. There are an estimated one billion people who are living with disabilities worldwide. This Sunday, December 3, 2017 is the International Day of Disabled Persons.
On Friday, November 24, our Chief Negotiators, Sister Nancy Beauchamp and Brother Sylvain Lapointe met with Canada Post Chief Negotiators, Mark Bédard and Bruno Cadieux, to discuss logistics. This is a necessary step required to get negotiations moving.
Negotiations have barely started and already, the public attacks on postal workers’ pensions have begun. This week, the National Post ran an op-ed attacking postal workers’ pensions. Terrence Corcoran goes beyond all sane limits, not only painting a biased picture of the pension plan, but in fact blaming postal workers for “concocting” Finance Minister Bill Morneau’s glaring conflict of interest.
This week, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers issued notice to bargain to Canada Post for both of our major bargaining units. After years of raucous labour-relations, attacks from government and violations of our constitutional right to free collective bargaining, there are many issues that must be resolved. The Urban Operations unit and the Rural and Suburban Mail Carriers unit will again meet the employer as one committee. Rural-Urban solidarity is key to achieving our demands.
You had your say on the Program of Demands. Here are the results: Urban Unit Vote: 94.2 % in favour, RSMC Unit Vote: 92.9 % in favour. RSMC members also voted on proposed changes to the calculation of their seniority. The results of this vote are as follows: 85.7 % in favour.
Air Canada has just cancelled its contract with IAI for the maintenance of its fleet of B767 jets. This decision is a direct result of the campaign launched months ago by the Canadian BDS Coalition to force Air Canada to end its business dealings with IAI. Although Air Canada still has smaller contracts with IAI, this is a major victory for the BDS movement.