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.
GSC recently announced its new brand identity and the release of its integrated platform.
GSC will now be called GreenShield. As a member of our benefits plan, there should be no changes to your claims experience. All providers will recognize the new name, and your experience will remain the same.
GreenShield plans to release its integrated platform at the beginning of 2024. Details will be provided as they become available.
Should you have any questions or concerns, please get in touch with the Benefits Centre at benefits@united-church.ca.
Do you know that as a GSC plan member you can now access reasonably priced and convenient vision care with Kits.ca in conjunction with your vision care benefit through GreenShield?
KITS is a Vancouver-based company. The retailer maintains a large inventory of contact lenses and eyeglasses, with over 700 styles and over 300,000 frames in stock.
They offer many regular promotions that bring down the cost of vision care, including
All you have to do is visit KITS.ca, log in as a GSC member, and select your coverage. Your benefits will be applied automatically when you check out. GSC is billed directly for eligible expenses, making your purchase seamless.
For more information, please visit KITS.ca.
It’s been a long day at the office. You collapse onto the couch and try to relax. Just a few moments of peace and quiet is all you need.
But before you know it, your partner wants to discuss their day, the kids need to be picked up from school, and your parents’ doctor is calling you. You value all these relationships, but managing them through the stress of daily life can feel overwhelming.
Resilient relationships are essential to our wellbeing, but they don’t happen on their own.
In this campaign, our experts will help you resolve conflicts with coworkers, communicate effectively with a partner, talk to your teens, improve your relationship with money, and much more. They’ll provide the strategies and insight you need to build healthy, resilient relationships in your personal and professional life.
On April 19th at 12:00 p.m. ET the Ask the Expert web chat will be on Personal Finance: Making the Most with Your Money.
Check out your LifeSpeak platform now! Log in using the Group Account option. The password is "wellness".
You may be feeling stressed at work or at home and unable to manage this. Every evening, the same story repeats in your mind: you can’t fall asleep, you wake up during the night and your mind is racing. You want to speak to your supervisor about work-related stress or help a loved one or a colleague.
LifeSpeak video-series on stress and sleep and our guided meditation could be that first step towards wellness.
On March 22nd at 12:00 p.m. ET the Ask the Expert web chat by addresses how to eat in order to have better immunity.
Check out your LifeSpeak platform now! Log in using the Group Account option. The password is "wellness".
The United Church of Canada provides a Defined Benefit Pension Plan for all employees who work more than 14 hours a week.
Visit CHURCHx for a recording of the 90 minute Pension Information Seminar to learn about how the plan works, what it costs, what it provides, and how to apply for your pension when you're ready. In this program, we will describe:
To view the recording and get all the handouts:
Click here to view a recording of this seminar on YouTube.
It’s almost lunchtime. You meant to cook a nutritious meal—but it would be so much easier to just order takeout online. Before you know it, you’re reaching for your phone.
Sound familiar?
Building new habits is hard. Our old habits are so much easier, but that doesn’t mean they’re better for us.
Healthy habits are the foundation of a happy and meaningful life. In this campaign, our experts will help you integrate mindfulness into your routine, prepare nutritious meals, discover the right workout for you and much more. Positive habits are the building blocks of a resilient mind and healthy body. They help you enjoy the success you seek in your personal and professional life.
On February 22nd at 12:00 p.m. ET the Ask the Expert web chat by Reena Kotecha will share some lifestyle tweaks to improve your mental and physical health.
Check out your LifeSpeak platform now! Log in using the Group Account option. The password is "wellness".
The accrual rate is the rate at which you earn your pension. In 2023, you will earn your pension at the rate of 1.85% of your pensionable earnings.
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 to 2024, 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 | 1.4% | 1.4% of $60,000 | $ 840 |
At the end of your career, the annual pension amounts earned each year (pension credits) 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 2023 will continue to benefit you for the rest of your retired life.
There is no automatic indexing or increases in our pension plan. Each year, the Pension Board and Pension Plan Advisory Committee assess the resources available and determine whether there are surplus funds that can be used to increase benefits.
