Building Sustainable Pension Plans and Post-Retirement Benefit Programs in Canadian Universities

Going concern and solvency deficits are plaguing a number of university Defined Benefit pension plans and Hybrid pension plans as a result of the 2008 economic crisis.  A similar situation, albeit smaller in scope, arose in 1999 with the collapse of the dotcoms. Pension funds have grown to the point that they dwarf university operations creating severe financial hardship for universities when investment losses arise or returns are less than expected.

Post-retirement benefit programs are also placing significant and rapidly escalating financial pressures on universities.  Although many universities have accrued the expenses, few if any, have funded their programs.

Universities are quite different than much of the broader public sector which have mostly pooled their pension plans or pension assets or which have some degree of government backing for the funding of the programs.  To some degree, universities are more akin to large corporations when responding to the challenges of funding these benefit programs and they are looking for ways of making these programs more sustainable going forward.

Universities have often come together to share knowledge, to explore how best to respond, and to seek collective solutions where appropriate.  In this workshop, experts will explore the possible impact of provincial and federal pension reforms, including reforms of CPP, on universities as employers  and on employees...  Universities which have achieved greater sustainability of pension and post-retirement programs at the bargaining table will describe how this was achieved and the tradeoffs granted.  The union view of these issues as well as case law will be considered. Finally, delegates will hear about the experience of collective action in two provinces as well as options currently be explored in one province and by the private sector (General Motors of Canada).

Join us for this important comprehensive review of all the factors and developments affecting pensions and post-retirement benefit programs in universities.  Whether you are introducing or modifying programs or plans, it is important to understand the overall context for this rapidly evolving sector.