TORONTO, ON, NOVEMBER 16, 2021 – Defined benefit (DB) pension plans from across Canada today released an informational video entitled What’s Important produced in collaboration to mark Financial Literacy Month and raise awareness about the value of retirement income security.

The plans include BC’s College, Municipal, Public Service and WorkSafeBC, College of Applied Arts and Technology (CAAT), OMERS, Ontario Pension Board, OPTrust, and Teachers’ Pension Plan Corporation Newfoundland & Labrador. The video was developed in support of member education and awareness.

While each of the plans represent a different membership, they are united in their commitment to providing their members with key pension facts so that they can make informed decisions about their financial security in retirement.

"OMERS is focused on making a positive impact in the lives of our members by providing them with a sustainable, affordable and meaningful pension in retirement. We are proud advocates of the defined benefit model and pleased to partner with our peers in promoting its value together,” said Celine Chiovitti, Executive Vice President & Head of Pensions, OMERS.

"This video collaboration serves to highlight the strength of Canadian pension plans, and the importance of the defined-benefit model we all continue to advocate for, and its importance in protecting the pension promise to all of our respective members,” added Peter Shena, Executive Vice President & Chief Pension Officer, Ontario Pension Board (OPB).

Audrey Forbes, Senior Vice President, Member Experience, OPTrust, noted “Together we believe in the value defined benefit pensions offer to Canadians and the economy. The collaboration between all pension plans started a year ago during National Financial Literacy Month to raise awareness about the value of retirement security.”

The video underscores the importance of getting all the facts when making decisions that can impact an individual’s financial future in retirement – before those decisions are made. What’s Important can be viewed here.

 

ABOUT BC’S COLLEGE, MUNICIPAL, PUBLIC SERVICE AND WORKSAFE PENSION PLANS

For information on BC’s College, Municipal, Public Service and WorkSafeBC pension plans, please visit pensionsbc.ca

ABOUT CAAT PENSION PLAN

Established in 1967, the CAAT Pension Plan is an independent, jointly governed plan that offers two designs of a defined benefit pension. CAAT's award-winning DBplus plan is leading an extraordinary pace of growth for the Plan. Originally created to support the Ontario college system, the CAAT Plan now proudly serves more than 200 participating employers from various sectors including the for-profit, nonprofit, and broader public sectors. Currently, it has over 74,000 active and retired members. The CAAT Plan is respected for its pension and investment management expertise and focus on stability and benefit security. At January 1, 2021, the Plan was 119% funded on a going-concern basis. Learn more at: www.caatpension.ca.

ABOUT OMERS

Founded in 1962, OMERS is a jointly sponsored, defined benefit pension plan, with 1,000 participating employers ranging from large cities to local agencies, and over half a million active, deferred and retired members. Our members include union and non-union employees of municipalities, school boards, local boards, transit systems, electrical utilities, emergency services and children’s aid societies across Ontario. OMERS teams work in Toronto, London, New York, Amsterdam, Luxembourg, Singapore, Sydney and other major cities across North America and Europe – serving members and employers and originating and managing a diversified portfolio of high-quality investments in public markets, private equity, infrastructure and real estate. OMERS had net assets of $114 billion as at June 30, 2021.

ABOUT OPB

Ontario Pension Board (OPB) administers Ontario’s Public Service Pension Plan (PSPP), a defined benefit pension plan serving approximately 91, 000 active, former and retired members. With $31 billion in net assets, the PSPP is one of Canada’s largest pension plans. It’s also one of Canada’s oldest pension plans, and celebrated 100 years of successfully delivering the pension promise in 2020. To learn more about OPB, visit www.opb.ca.

ABOUT OPTRUST

With net assets of over $23 billion, OPTrust invests and manages one of Canada’s largest pension funds and administers the OPSEU Pension plan (including OPTrust Select), a defined benefit plan with over 98,000 members. OPTRUST was established to give plan members and the Government of Ontario an equal voice in the administration of the Plan and the investment of its assets through joint trusteeship. OPTrust is governed by a 10-member Board of Trustees, five of whom are appointed by OPSEU and five by the Government of Ontario.

ABOUT TEACHERS’ PENSION PLAN CORPORATION (TPPC)

As the second largest public sector pension plan in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Teachers’ Pension Plan Corporation (TPPC) serves more than 18,000 active, retired, and inactive plan members. Since August 2016, the Teachers’ Pension Plan (TPP) is jointly sponsored by the Government of Newfoundland and the Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers’ Association. The TPPC administers the TPP and the investment of its assets. The TPP is fully funded, on a going concern basis, with a funded ratio of 114.9% at December 31, 2020. To learn more about the TPPC, visit their website at www.tppcnl.ca.

 

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MEDIA CONTACTS

Vicki Lam
Senior Communications Advisory
CAAT Pension Plan
vlam@caatpension.ca

Neil Hrab
Manager, Media Relations
OMERS
+1 416 369 2418
nhrab@omers.com

Ileana Brito
Director, Stakeholder Relations
OPB 416-601-4082
ileana.brito@opb.ca

Claire Prashaw
Director, Public Affairs
OPTrust
1-416-681-3617 
cprashaw@optrust.com

Brenda Hansford
Director, Finance and Pension Administration
Teachers’ Pension Plan Corporation (TPPC)
brenda.hansford@tppcnl.ca