June 2024  

This communication provides updates to your union about the PEPP pension plan administered by Plannera Pensions & Benefits. Financial literacy information is summarized in this communication and is also available on our website, blog, and social channels. You are encouraged to share relevant information with your union members who are PEPP members through your own communication channels and website. 

Highlights 

Know the facts: 3 reasons to stay with PEPP when you retire 

Are you over 50 and unsure what to do with your PEPP account once you retire? Here are three reasons why it pays to stay in PEPP. Read more on our blog. 

Parenthood and pension planning 

Koryn and her husband, Edward, have carefully managed their finances to allow them to buy a house and raise two children while pursuing their passion for travel. We caught up with Koryn to ask about her family’s pension planning. Read more on our blog. 

Fund Information and Performance 

Did you know you can review PEPP's fund performance right on our website? Our Fund Information and Performance page is updated daily. 

Benefits of the member online account 

Your member online account is a quick and easy way to check your pension details wherever you have an internet connection. Members can check their account balance, manage their investments, change their address and beneficiaries, and more. Sign up today. 

Upcoming Workshops  

Plannera offers webinars and workshops tailored to your age and stage of career: Learn, Build, Prepare, and Enjoy. They cover everything from the basics of money management to the finer details of retirement income sources.   

LEARN about your pension plan (virtual) 

Online webinar 

September 10, 2024 – 8:30 AM – 12:00 PM 

Register here 

BUILD your retirement plan (virtual) 

Online webinar 

October 16, 2024 – 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM 

Register here 

PREPARE to retire 

We offer many in-person and virtual sessions of the PREPARE workshop throughout the year. If you are late in your career, this workshop is the one for you. We focus on the retirement process. Visit our website for the full listing. 

ENJOY your retirement (virtual) 

Online webinar 

June 25, 2024 – 8:30 AM – 11:30 AM 

Register here 

Want to learn more about your pension and benefits with a 1-on-1 consultant?  

We have Retirement Information Consultants (RICs) available to meet with you in-person, virtually or by phone. They will answer your questions and help you develop your retirement plan. Our RICs include Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®), Qualified Associate Financial Planner™ (QAFP™), Personal Financial Planner (PFP®) professionals, and other industry recognized certifications. All our consultants are here to serve your best interests.  

Learn more by contacting one of our Retirement Information Consultants at 306-787-3170 or ric@plannera.ca. 

Interested in learning more about financial planning certifications? Visit the FP Canada™ website at www.fpcanada.ca  or the Canadian Securities Institute at www.csi.ca. 

Contact our team if you have questions! 

Heather Mackenzie 

Manager, Member & Stakeholder Relations 

Email: Heather.Mackenzie@plannera.ca   

Greetings!

Please note that the 2024 Unifor National Scholarship application period is open!

Unifor recognizes that the cost associated with post-secondary education is a challenge for many working families. To assist in making education more accessible, we have established 28 scholarships of $2,000.00 each to children of Unifor members and a Unifor member entering their first year of post-secondary studies. Five of these scholarships are administered by the Quebec Council with a separate application form (see www.uniforquebec.org). Residents of Quebec must apply using that application process.

More information about this popular program including details on how to apply can be found here.

THE APPLICATION PERIOD CLOSES ON FRIDAY JUNE 14, 2024.

Download our 2024 Scholarship Poster to display at your workplaces.

In solidarity,

Robin Fairchild Clennell
Director, Unifor Education Department

To:  Local Union Presidents, Recording Secretaries, all staff, anti-scab campaign supporters:

This has been an important week in our campaign for anti-scab legislation.

On Thursday, I appeared before a House of Commons standing committee to tell MPs that they need to urgently pass Bill C-58.

I did this on behalf of thousands of working people – including Unifor members – who have spent countless hours on picket lines over many decades, fighting for their right to collectively bargain.

You can read my testimony here or watch the video here.

This federal anti-scab legislation will help protect the right to fair collective bargaining and to strike, when necessary: a right that workers have fought for and won repeatedly.

Bill C-58 passed second reading in the House of Commons with all-party support on Feb. 27, 2024 –the same day the CN Autoport strike began with scabs already doing the work of our members.

As the strike against CN Autoport entered its fourth week, and Unifor and the company entered into conciliation, our union walked away from the table on Tuesday after the company repeatedly tabled worse offers than the last agreement, which our 239 members at Local 100 soundly rejected.

Last week, a CN train was safely stopped during a solidarity action by Unifor members in Winnipeg as part of an escalation caused by the company’s use of scab labour in Halifax.

Our union is advocating for anti-scab legislation in every jurisdiction across Canada with the goal that every worker’s constitutional right to free and fair collective bargaining will be upheld.

Local 100 members from CN Autoport joined Unifor representatives and other unions at the Nova Scotia Legislature on Tuesday to support the introduction of legislation to amend the Trade Union Act to protect workers on strike from their employer using replacement workers.

I know the Manitoba government will very soon follow suit.

Our campaign is in full swing, and momentum is growing.

I invite you to be part of the fight, support our Anti-Scab campaign and help spread the word with this graphic on your social media networks.

Let’s go!

In solidarity,

Lana Payne
National President

To: Local Union Presidents, Recording Secretaries, NEB, All Staff

Dear Members,

In a crucial time for Canada's passenger rail system, our collective action is more important than ever. 

The risk of privatization looms large, threatening the public stewardship of our rail services. This move could undermine the promising High Frequency Rail (HFR) project, which holds the potential to revolutionize travel across Canada.

We stand at a crossroads, and your voice is critical. 

The Get Canada Back on Track campaign is our united front against these changes, aimed at ensuring that the control of our rail services remains in the public's hands. The details of our campaign, including the Government's privatization plans and our strategies to counter them, are outlined in our recent update. View the Member Memo.

We need your immediate action:

1. Sign the Petition today to voice your opposition to rail privatization. Your signature sends a strong message to the federal government about the public's demand for retaining public control of our rail services. Sign the Petition Now.

2. Write to Your MP: Make your voice heard directly by those who represent you. Demand their support for public rail services and the HFR project. It only takes a minute, but it can make a significant impact.Write Your MP Now.

The deadline for the petition is fast approaching, and every action counts. Together, we can protect the future of our passenger rail system for generations to come.

In solidarity,

Lana Payne
National President

Click here to read the new report online.

A new commitment to public dental insurance was one of the key parts of the March 2022 Supply and Confidence Agreement between the NDP and Liberal parties. This new form of insurance is unfolding over three distinct phases between 2022 and 2025.

At each phase, the categories of who receives dental care coverage expand to cover more people. However, some of the basic design elements remain the same when it comes to considering who is excluded from this plan. Canada’s new dental care plan only covers Canadians who aren’t insured through an existing private plan or who are poorly covered by a public plan (Appendix 1 provides a discussion of the interaction between existing provincial fill-in-the-gap dental programs and the new federal plan). There are also family income restrictions: if a family makes below $90,000 annually, it gets coverage with co-payments; a family whose income is below $70,000 annually gets coverage without co-payments. All families whose income is over $90,000 a year will be left out of all phases of the new federal plan—even if they aren’t currently covered by a dental insurance.

The choice for what comes next is twofold: (1) Continue to create new medical care programs with a fill-in-the-gaps model and an income cap, like Canada is currently doing on dental care, or (2) Align new medical care programs with the principles of the Canada Health Act, which is based on the underlying principle of health care for all.

The findings in this analysis of Canada’s nascent national dental care plan might also be relevant to the much anticipated announcement of a national pharmacare plan. Income restrictions could leave millions of Canadians out of both plans while a universal program would align with the principles of the Canada Health Act—everyone should be eligible for these programs.

Click here to read the new report online.

A new commitment to public dental insurance was one of the key parts of the March 2022 Supply and Confidence Agreement between the NDP and Liberal parties. This new form of insurance is unfolding over three distinct phases between 2022 and 2025.

At each phase, the categories of who receives dental care coverage expand to cover more people. However, some of the basic design elements remain the same when it comes to considering who is excluded from this plan. Canada’s new dental care plan only covers Canadians who aren’t insured through an existing private plan or who are poorly covered by a public plan (Appendix 1 provides a discussion of the interaction between existing provincial fill-in-the-gap dental programs and the new federal plan). There are also family income restrictions: if a family makes below $90,000 annually, it gets coverage with co-payments; a family whose income is below $70,000 annually gets coverage without co-payments. All families whose income is over $90,000 a year will be left out of all phases of the new federal plan—even if they aren’t currently covered by a dental insurance.

The choice for what comes next is twofold: (1) Continue to create new medical care programs with a fill-in-the-gaps model and an income cap, like Canada is currently doing on dental care, or (2) Align new medical care programs with the principles of the Canada Health Act, which is based on the underlying principle of health care for all.

The findings in this analysis of Canada’s nascent national dental care plan might also be relevant to the much anticipated announcement of a national pharmacare plan. Income restrictions could leave millions of Canadians out of both plans while a universal program would align with the principles of the Canada Health Act—everyone should be eligible for these programs.