Pensions
OMERS
OMERS Sponsors Corporation approves plan changes to address deficit
July 7, 2010 The Sponsors Corporation of the Ontario
Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) has approved temporary changes
to support the funded status of the OMERS Primary Plan:
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A three-year contribution rate increase for both members
and employers, beginning in 2011, following the filing of the 2009
Primary Plan actuarial valuation with regulators this year.
-
Changes to the calculation of benefits members receive
if they terminate employment before they’re eligible for an early
retirement pension. (This only affects benefits based on service earned
after 2012.)
The OMERS pension formula, inflation protection in
retirement, survivor benefits and disability benefits are not affected. The
motion to allow paramedics to retire at age 60 without actuarial reduction
did not garner sufficient votes to pass.
For more information, click here:
http://www.omerssc.com/index.cfm?pagePath=Plan_Design_Changes/2010_Plan_Changes&id=18513
NOTICE
Contribution decrease for OPSEU members in the plan
August 18, 2008 As of January 1, 2009, contribution rates for the majority of OMERS
plan members will decrease.
Download PDF for more details.
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OPSEU
gains seat
on OMERS Sponsors Corp
OPSEU has obtained a permanent seat on the new
OMERS Sponsors Corporation (SC). The SC has officially
constituted itself with by-laws covering its permanent
composition, meetings, banking, insurance/indemnification, and
dispute resolution process.
The SC is responsible for all plan design
issues, contribution rates and deciding when to file the
actuarial valuation. The former OMERS Board (now called the
Administration Corporation or AC) will continue to be
responsible for pension plan administration and investments.
Legal counsel was retained to assist with the
drafting of by-laws and negotiating the transfer agreement with
the province for $2.3 million in start-up funding. Independent
consulting assistance was obtained for directors and officers’
liability insurance, and part-time, contracted administrative
support was arranged. Labour mediator Martin Teplitsky was
appointed as facilitator by the provincial government to assist
the SC with setting itself up as a corporation.
Recently, the SC was presented with the 2006
plan valuation and will decide on whether to file with the
regulatory authority, FSCO. The plan earned a 14.8 per cent real
rate of return ($6.5 billion in net investment income).
According to OMERS Actuary Ian Markham, the plan is facing a
$0.5 billion deficit at the end of 2007, a surplus in 2008 of
$1.3 billion and another surplus of $3 billion in 2009.
The AC has designed and filed with FSCO a new
separate pension plan to provide for the supplemental benefits
for police, firefighters and paramedics. Bill 206 requires that
only one benefit can be bargained every three years and OMERS
will be ready to administer the contributions and begin
investing the monies as of July 1, 2008. These new supplemental
benefits will be stacked like a top-up on the pension paid under
the primary basic plan and there will be some choice for
purchase options to buy back past service.
A Communications Subcommittee has been struck in
order to provide a structure for communications with plan
members and plan sponsors, along with key stakeholders. The SC
now has information available regarding its activities on the
OMERS web page, which can be accessed by clicking here:
http://www.omerssponsorscorp.com/
For more information, contact Marnie Niemi
in the OPSEU Benefits Unit at
mniemi@opseu.org |
