The Government of Ontario is undertaking public consultations about the design of the proposed Ontario Retirement Pension Plan. OCUFA will be submitting a brief and participating in the consultations, and we also encourage faculty associations to participate. Upcoming locations for in-person consultations include Markham, Brampton, Thunder Bay, Ottawa, Etobicoke, Windsor, Woodstock and Stratford. These meetings are all scheduled to take place between February 6th and 13th. Written submissions must be received by the Ministry of Finance by February 13th.
Improved public pensions are necessary to improve retirement security for millions of Ontarians. As a result of the unwillingness of the federal government to enhance the Canada Pension Plan, Ontario announced plans last year to move on its own towards establishing an Ontario Retirement Pension Plan (ORPP). The upcoming ORPP consultations will focus on three key design issues:
- Whether it is appropriate to exclude Ontarians with comparable workplace pensions;
- The appropriate structure of the minimum earnings threshold; and
- How to address the needs of the self-employed.
The consultation documents are available online at www.ontario.ca/ORPP.
Contract faculty in particular stand to gain from the ORPP because they often do not have access to adequate workplace pensions. OCUFA is preparing a written submission outlining how the ORPP can best support secure retirement income for contract faculty. For more information about participating in the ORPP consultations, member associations should contact OCUFA staffer Brynne Sinclair-Waters.