Changes made in May 2011 to regulations under the Ontario Pension Benefits Act provide some pension plans in the broad public sector (which includes universities) with an opportunity to take advantage of temporary solvency funding relief. This relief would extend the time period over which institutions, like U of T, may fund any solvency deficits.

In order to be considered for temporary relief, eligible organizations must go through a two-stage process:

• Stage 1: Submit a plan to the Minister of Finance outlining ways to make the pension plan more sustainable; and then, if approved, proceed to Stage 2.
• Stage 2: Demonstrate that “substantial progress” has been made to meet the sustainability metrics set by the Ministry of Finance.

U of T is currently working through the first stage and has prepared an application. Our deadline for submission is December 30, 2011. Please note: This application was presented to the Pension Committee at its December 14, 2011 meeting for information.

The application must be shared with all active plan members and their representatives / collective bargaining agents prior to December 30, 2011. We will also share the application with our retired plan members early in the New Year.

We will keep you updated on the status of our application and will post the updates to www.hrandequity.utoronto.ca.