The Alberta Teachers’ Association is taking legal action against the recent ministerial order enacted on several of the province’s pension plans, including the Alberta Teachers’ Retirement Fund.
In documents submitted to court on March 10, the association argues the terms and conditions imposed in Finance Minister Travis Toews’ order are inconsistent with the province’s Teachers’ Pension Plans Act and constitute a breach of duty of procedural fairness owed to the ATA. While a court date hasn’t been set, the ATA is requesting the case be heard on an expedited timeline as the transfer of pension asset management has already begun and must be completed by the end of 2021, according to a press release.
Read: Alberta Teachers’ Association set to legally challenge pension order
In the release, Jason Schilling, president of the ATA, said teachers were concerned by the lack of consultation on the order, which was enacted after 2020 deadlines for investment management agreements between pensions and the Alberta Investment Management Corp. passed with no result.
The order allows the AIMCo to bypass a pension’s investment policy should it threaten to compromise AIMCo’s economies of scale or operational efficiencies, according to a previous ATRF press release. In addition to the ATRF, the order affects the Local Authorities Pension Plan, Public Service Pension Plan and the Special Forces Pension Plan.
Read: Alberta government facing backlash after changing terms of public-sector pensions