Tuesday, February 6, 2024 1:00 – 2:30 pm ET / 10:00 – 11:30pm PT
Click here for the start times in each of Canada’s Time Zones
The United Church of Canada provides a Defined Benefit Pension Plan for all employees who work more than 14 hours a week. Register here for this 90 minute program to learn about how the plan works, what it costs, what it provides, and how to apply for your pension when you're are ready. In this program we'll describe:
If you have any questions, please contact Shenagh Rosa, Manager, Pension Compliance and Communications, at srosa@united-church.ca
Good news! As announced in a recent letter from Pension Board Chair, Anne Soh, pension plan members will receive a pension increase effective January 1, 2024.
Pensioners and Deferred Members
Current pensioners and deferred members will receive a 4 percent* increase to their pension amount effective January 1, 2024.
* The Income Tax Act and regulations limit pension increases to the cumulative growth in Consumer Price Index since the pension commenced. For this reason, recently retired pensioners and deferred members who terminated membership recently will see a lesser increase.
Active Members
For active members, the accrual rate will stay at 1.85 percent in 2024 from the base rate of 1.4 percent. In 2025 the accrual rate is scheduled to return to 1.4 percent.
What Does “Accrual Rate” Mean?
The accrual rate is the rate at which you earn your pension. In 2024, you earn your pension at the rate of 1.85 percent of your pensionable earnings.
How Does This Work?
You earn a piece of pension every year that you work and contribute to the plan—like building blocks.
For example, let’s assume that a member’s pensionable earnings stayed constant at $60,000 every year, (for easy figuring). From 2019, that member would earn
|
Year |
Accrual Rate | Formula |
Pension Credit Earned |
|
2019 |
1.4% | 1.4% of $60,000 | $ 840 |
|
2020 |
1.85% | 1.85% of $60,000 | $ 1,110 |
|
2021 |
1.625% | 1.625% of $60,000 |
$ 975 |
| 2022 | 1.85% | 1.85% of $60,000 |
$ 1,110 |
| 2023 | 1.85% | 1.85% of $60,000 |
$ 1,110 |
| 2024 | 1.85% | 1.85% of $60,000 |
$ 1,110 |
| 2025 | 1.4% | 1.4% of $60,000 |
$ 840 |
At the end of your career, the annual pension amounts earned each year will add up to the total annual pension you will receive every year for the rest of your life. So, the higher amount earned in 2024 will continue to benefit you for the rest of your retired life.
What about Future Increases?
There is no automatic indexing of our plan. The Pension Board and Pension Plan Advisory Committee annually assess the resources available and determine whether there are surplus funds that can be used to increase benefits.
This publication will be provided electronically on a monthly basis to keep treasurers informed on important changes, key dates to support how we work together, and what we need your help with to deliver effective service. Please ensure the treasurer email of your community of faith / organization is up to date in ChurchHub. Reminder: If you change any contact information on ChurchHub, you must also provide this information directly to ADP/payroll and to The United Church of Canada Benefits Centre.
If you have any questions, please send them to employerservices@united-church.ca
Check back every month to read the newest edition!
Here are some links to other helpful resources:
Webinars for Church Treasurers
Amid widespread reporting about the risks of artificial general intelligence, Alphabet (formerly Google) shareholders voted on June 2 on a proposal, filed by SHARE on behalf of the Pension Plan of The United Church of Canada, requesting third-party scrutiny of the company’s targeted advertising system.
The proposal calls for the company to undertake a human rights impact assessment and states the growing concerns surrounding Alphabet’s advertising infrastructure’s heavy reliance on technology, including artificial intelligence, which has not been subject to a robust human rights due diligence process. This kind of assessment would identify, address, and prevent the potential adverse human rights impact of targeted advertising technologies.
“Alphabet’s targeted advertising business represents about 80% of the company’s revenue, which means that until a rigorous assessment is done, its shareholders are exposed to a litany of regulatory, legal and reputational risks,” said Sarah Couturier-Tanoh, Associate Director Corporate Engagement and Advocacy at SHARE. “Ultimately, the lack of clear oversight puts investors’ long-term value at risk.”
Proxy advisory firms Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services, and large U.S.-based pension funds CalPERS, CalSTRS, New York City pension funds, and Norges Bank all agreed with SHARE’s perspective on the matter.
The proposal received 47% support from independent shareholders and 18% overall. The sharp difference between these two figures is explained by the multi-class stock structure conferring 10 votes for 1 share held by Alphabet’s management. SHARE opposes multi-class stock structures as a general principle of good corporate governance.
While our shareholder proposal ultimately did not pass, the nearly 50% support of independent shareholders is a strong signal to Alphabet management that there is great concern about, and now scrutiny of, their targeted advertising system. Often corporate engagement is a process of incremental gains requiring persistence. Persistence is something that the Pension Fund of The United Church of Canada has in abundance when it comes to investing responsibly!
Summer has arrived, and our Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offers a variety of summer-themed resources to support your mental health.
Resources you can download include:
You can also download the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) resource guide here.
For more information, please visit www.lifeworks-learning.com/?sfid=787&_sf_s=self%20care&_sft_audience=employeesrkplace Learning (lifeworks-learning.com).
Annual member statements for the 2022 plan year will be issued to active, deferred, and retired members of the pension plan at the end of June 2023.
Remember that if you have a spouse they will automatically receive any pre-retirement death benefit as per pension legislation. However, you should also designate a beneficiary in case your spouse pre-deceases you.
If you need to declare a spouse or designate a beneficiary, please scan the QR code to fill out the secure form that will be submitted directly to the Benefits Centre. If you have not received your statement, please contact pension@united-church.ca to ensure the address on file is correct.
If you have not begun receiving your pension, the statement will contain a box that looks something like this:
| Your Pension | Your Future |
| FOR EVERY YEAR YOU PARTICIPATE IN THE PENSION PLAN YOU INCREASE YOUR RETIREMENT INCOME | $XX,XXX
THE AMOUNT YOU HAVE EARNED ALREADY |
| IN 2022, YOU EARNED
$X,XXX THIS IS ADDED TO THE ANNUAL PENSION YOU’VE ALREADY EARNED |
+ XX,XXX
YOUR PROJECTED ANNUAL PENSION TO AGE 65 |
| + 15,679
MAXIMUM C/QPP BENEFITS (in January 2023)
|
|
| + 8,292
MAXIMUM OAS BENEFITS (April to June 2023) |
|
| = $XX,XXX
YOUR TOTAL ANNUAL PENSION EARNED TO DECEMBER 31, 2022 |
= $XX,XXX
YOUR ESTIMATED ANNUAL RETIREMENT INCOME (excluding other employer pensions or personal savings) |
THE AMOUNT YOU HAVE EARNED ALREADY - is calculated based on your pensionable earnings and years of credited service.
YOUR PROJECTED ANNUAL PENSION TO AGE 65 – is an estimate based on the assumption that you continue to work in the same job category until you reach age 65. If you stop working before that, or if your pensionable earnings change, this amount will also change.
MAXIMUM C/QPP BENEFITS – The amount shown as an example on your pension statement is the maximum amount payable under the Canada Pension Plan. Not all Canadians receive the maximum possible payout from the Canada Pension Plan. Please note that the average annual amount of CPP paid to new recipients in 2022 was $8,433.
In order to determine your personal benefit under the Canada Pension Plan, you can request a Personal Access Code (PAC). You can use this code to register for My Service Canada Account, which will provide access to your personal record of contributions and benefits earned under the Canada Pension Plan.
MAXIMUM OAS BENEFITS – Old Age Security is a pension you can receive if you are 65 years of age or older and have lived in Canada for at least 10 years. The amount you receive depends on your income and how long you lived in Canada or specific countries after the age of 18. If your net income (line 23600 of your income tax return) exceeds an income threshold ($79,845, for 2023) you have to repay some or all of your OAS pension.
When planning for retirement, all of these sources of income, as well as your personal savings and any pension from previous employers should be considered. We recommend that you consult with a financial planner to help with the financial aspects of your retirement planning.
As we approach Pride Month, we want to emphasize our commitment to inclusivity and support for our LGBTQ+ employees and their loved ones. Our Employee Assistance Program offers a range of resources, including:
Please click here to learn more about our Respect, Diversity, and Inclusion Programs.
Download your resources here!
Download your resources here! (Zip file)
We are pleased to announce that the United Church of Canada (UCC) Pension Plan emerged as a top contender in the 2022 Pension Leadership Awards. The plan's Pension Fund Manager, Derek Hurst, was nominated for the Investment Officer of the Year award.
Although the UCC Pension Plan was a finalist in its category, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Pension Plan ultimately won the award.
This is not the first time the UCC Plan has been recognized for its outstanding achievements. At the 2021 Pension Leadership Awards, the plan was shortlisted for its investment practices under the Sustainable Investing Award category with the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and British Columbia Investment Management Corporation.
The Investment Officer of the Year award is presented to an Investment Officer who has demonstrated leadership when it comes to pension investing and made demonstrable improvements to their organization’s investment process. Environmental, social and governance factors are also taken into account.
For more details, visit www.benefitscanada.com/microsite/microsite-cir/pension-leadership-awards-2022/winners-and-finalists/.
This reminder is a follow-up to notices shared late last year and earlier this year with community of faith treasurers and administrators, as well as ministry personnel, about changes to the regional cost of living group assignments. A copy of the letter shared with treasurers and administrators is in the Downloads section at the bottom of the Ministers’ Salary Schedule and Cost of Living Groups webpage.
These changes will be effective for the pay period beginning July 1, 2023, and apply to the balance of the year. You can find the revised cost of living group assignment data in the Downloads section as well.
If your regional COL group assignment has moved up, your ADP administrator will need to update the minister’s salary in TeamPay or inform ADP of the new salary amount for the pay period beginning July 1.
Salaries for ministry personnel serving in locations where the regional COL group assignment has been adjusted down will be maintained as per the terms of the appointment or call. This includes those whose appointments renew. This means that if the pastoral charge is in a lower cost of living group, the current minister’s salary may not be reduced. It will remain subject to the annual economic adjustment to minimum salaries or as defined in the terms of appointment or call.
There is no change to the COL group for 45 percent of communities of faith. Thirty-nine percent of communities of faith have stepped up one group. Sixteen percent have stepped down one group. These changes reflect regional differences in the costs of housing, property and provincial income taxes, utilities, and goods and services.
As a plan member, you can now submit your claims from your phone using the GSC everywhere app. The app gives you 24/7 access to your benefits and includes features such as
For more details, visit the Mobile App page on the GreenShield website.
