Pension

RETIREMENT

NORMAL RETIREMENT

A member’s normal retirement date will be the first day of the month following the month in which the member reaches age 65. If a member applies for their pension after their 65th birthday they will be eligible to apply for this pension retroactively up to one year but no earlier than the month after their 65th birthday.


EARLY RETIREMENT

A member may elect to retire as early as age 55 on a reduced pension. The reduction will be 6% per year (i.e. ½% per month) between the early retirement date and age 65.


POSTPONED RETIREMENT

Members may elect not to retire at their normal retirement dates in which case they will continue to earn pension credits with respect to contributions made on their behalf by a participating employer. Such members may elect to start receiving the pension on the first day of any month after their normal retirement dates but, under Government regulation, must commence to receive their pensions no later than the first day of December in the year they reach age 71.

Note that retroactive pension payments will not be paid prior to the month following the members 65th birthday or more than 12 months prior to the eligible commencement month in which the completed pension application is received.


RETURN TO WORK AFTER RETIREMENT

Members that retire and collect a pension from the Local 213 Pension Plan then return to work for a contributing employer should be aware that they will have the choice of

  1. Not accumulating any pension credits after their pension is in pay and continue to collect their pension, OR
  2. Suspending pension payments and accumulating additional pension credits, this is subject to rules within the Income Tax Act.*
    • Members that opt to suspend their pension must give at least one month’s notice in writing to the plan that they want to suspend their pension payment.
    • When members that have suspended their pension want to resume pension payments, they must notify the plan in writing at least one month prior to resuming their payments.

*With regard to Option 2, if a Retired Member does not elect to have his pension suspended during a period of re-employment or is unable to make such election as he is beyond the end of the calendar year in which he attains 71 years of age, or such other date as is acceptable under the ITA, any contributions to the Plan in respect of such period of re-employment shall be treated in accordance with Income Tax Act legislation (Bill C-30 – as noted below)

ITA Bill C-30 requires that if Participating Employer contributions are received by the Plan on behalf of:

  • a Retired Member; or
  • any employee of a Participating Employer after the end of the calendar year in which the employee attains 71 years of age;

And the Participating Employer is a party to a collective agreement entered into:

  • before January 1, 2022, then such contributions will be accepted by the Plan; or
  • after December 31, 2021, then such contributions will not be accepted by the Plan.
    • In this situation, the contributions for the member will be diverted to the Local 213 Electrical Workers’ Welfare Plan.
    • The member in this situation, should not receive a Pension Adjustment for the diverted contributions from their employer.  The Local 213 Electrical Workers’ Pension Plan will notify Participating Employers of the contribution amount to be excluded from the employee’s Pension Adjustment value on their annual T4.