As a separate process from bargaining, members of the Wilfrid Laurier University Faculty Association (WLUFA) and the Executive have ratified a tentative agreement that provides consent under the Pension Benefits Act to convert the Wilfrid Laurier Pension Plan to the University Pension Plan (UPP).
WLUFA’s primary interest in entering negotiations over conversion to the UPP was to secure greater stability and accountability for the pension plan by moving from a single employer pension plan where the employer has sole responsibility for funding the plan, to one that has shared governance and risk.
The tentative agreement includes provisions for a one-time offset that covers the difference in contribution rates between the Laurier Plan and the UPP. The offset will apply to all members, including contract faculty and part-time librarians, whether they are members of the Pension Plan or not. The Agreement also provides that past WLU service will count towards the UPP’s early retirement option. Administrative stipends for WLUFA members will be counted as pensionable earnings when determining benefits and contributions. The agreement also moves the Supplemental Pension Plan into the WLUFA full-time collective agreement for the first time.
Because Laurier has a single plan that covers all employees, other campus unions will each negotiate and vote on their own agreements regarding conversion to the UPP, a process that will likely be completed over the winter.