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The divestment protections apply if you start to work for the new employer in conjunction with the transfer of your previous employer’s business, assets or services. This can be the case whether you join the new employer as a result of a transfer agreement, under “reasonable efforts” provisions in your collective agreement, or through a job competition or direct job offer with the new employer. In each case, OPTrust must look at the specific facts of the situation to determine whether the divestment rules apply.
The Pension Benefits Act does not require that you work for the new employer in the same (or in a substantially similar) position to the one you held before the transfer for the divestment protections to apply. In fact in some cases, employees’ positions may be declared surplus because the former employer has not made any arrangements with the new employer to transfer or offer jobs to any staff as part of the divestment agreement. However, if any of these employees whose positions were declared surplus obtain employment with the new employer, and become members of the new employer’s pension plan, the divestment rules may still apply.
Sometimes employees move to the new employer at different times or under different “phases” of the divestment. Divestment rules will still apply whether the employees join the new employer all at the same time or in different phases, as long as they obtain employment under the terms described in the Pension Benefits Act.
If you join a new employer as a result of a transfer of your former employer’s business, assets or services you should check whether the divestment rules apply to your pension. OPTrust can help but we will need specific information from you. We may also need to contact your current and former employer.
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