Joining the OPSEU Pension Plan
Joining the OPSEU Pension Plan
Who are the Members of the OPSEU Pension Plan?
How do you get Credit in the OPSEU Pension Plan?
Transfers to and from the OPSEU Penson Plan
HOW COULD PENSION CREDIT CHANGE WHILE YOU ARE A MEMBER?
WHAT COULD HAPPEN TO YOUR PENSION BENEFIT IF YOUR SPOUSAL RELATIONSHIP ENDS?
Who are the members of the OPSEU Pension Plan?
Mandatory membership
You must join the OPSEU Pension Plan if you are less than 65 and:
- you work for an Ontario government ministry or scheduled agency as permanent, classified or probationary staff, and you are represented by OPSEU
- you are permanently employed by the OPSEU Pension Trust
- you are permanently employed by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board and are represented by OPSEU
- you are permanently employed by one of the following scheduled agencies, boards, commissions or organizations:
- Alcohol & Gaming Commission of Ontario and are represented
by OPSEU - Liquor Control Board of Ontario and are represented by the Liquor Board Employees’ Division of OPSEU
- Liquor Boards Employees’ Union
- Niagara Parks Commission and are represented by OPSEU
- Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation and are represented by OPSEU (certain workplaces)
- Ontario Pension Board and are represented by OPSEU
- Workers’ Compensation Appeals Tribunal and are represented by OPSEU
- Alcohol & Gaming Commission of Ontario and are represented
- you are a “grandfathered” member.
In certain divestment situations, those who are members of the OPSEU Pension Plan at divestment are “grandfathered” and are allowed to remain as active members in the OPSEU Pension Plan until termination or retirement. Members who fall into this category include:
- employees of Whitby Mental Health Centre, North East Mental Health Centre, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (Addiction Research Foundation and Queen Street Mental Health Centre Divisions), who are represented by OPSEU.
OPTIONAL MEMBERSHIP
You may be eligible to join the OPSEU Pension Plan at any time starting from your first day of employment if you are anOPSEU-represented member after 1992 and are employed on a non-permanent basis:
- by the Crown under the Public Service Act
- by an agency, board, commission, foundation or organization that was a participating
- employer in the Public Service Pension Plan before December 31, 1994
- by an agency that was a participating employer in the OPSEU Pension Plan after December 31, 1994.
If your membership is optional and you decide to join the OPSEU Pension Plan, you must complete the membership forms that are available from your human resources representative or the OPTrust website. Once you join the Plan you cannot cancel your membership unless you terminate your employment.
PREVIOUS MEMBERSHIP IN THE OPSEU PENSION PLAN
If you become a member of the OPSEU Pension Plan when you return to the OPS or to an employer participating in the OPSEU Pension Plan and you have a deferred pension from OPTrust related to past service, your prior credit is linked to your current credit.
When calculating your average salary and credit we will consider both periods of membership. When you rejoin the Plan, any payment made to you when you previously left the Plan (i.e., excess contributions) must be repaid with interest; otherwise your pension will be actuarially reduced when you terminate.
PREVIOUS MEMBERSHIP IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE PENSION PLAN (PSPP)
Your credit in the PSPP (which is administered by the Ontario Pension Board) is not automatically added to your service in the OPSEU Pension Plan if you terminated employment and have a deferred pension certificate from the PSPP. If you have a deferred pension from the PSPP and want information about moving your prior credit to the OPSEU Pension Plan, please contact OPTrust for more information. You may choose to move your prior credit to the OPSEU Pension Plan or leave your credit with the PSPP. See "Time Limits" about deadlines.