The Canadian Coalition for Retirement Security has launched a campaign to push for legislation to protect the earned pension benefits of public and private sector employees and retirees.
The campaign is being launched in response to the federal government’s plans to introduce target-benefit or shared-risk pension plans to Crown corporations and federally-regulated employers.
The group believes no employer should be allowed to change the compensation promised to people once they have retired.
“A deal is a deal—governments and employers should not be allowed to go back on the promises and commitments made to millions of Canadians, including veterans, police and other loyal public servants when they were working,” says coalition spokesperson Jean-Guy Soulière.
Together, the coalition is calling on Canada’s next federal government to take steps, including legislation, to protect Canadians from “this threat to retirement security.”
The coalition is comprised of 22 organizations, including the Public Service Alliance of Canada, the National Association of Federal Retirees, the Canadian Labour Congress and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers. It represents nearly six million working and retired Canadians.