Council Votes to Change Pension Plan

Council has voted in favour of overhauling its current pension structure.

Under the existing arrangement, councillors earned pensionable service, but were not required to make any financial contribution toward their pensions.

“This Council committed in Budget 2013 to complete a review of its pension plan by June 30, 2013,” says Mayor O’Keefe. “We recognized that it was no longer appropriate to continue with a non-contributory pension arrangement. But we also had to acknowledge that existing and former councillors had earned pension entitlements which could not simply be extinguished.”

Under the new pension arrangement:

• Existing councillors who are re-elected may continue to participate in the existing plan, but their base salary will be reduced by a factor of 6 per cent.
• Newly elected councillors will not be eligible to participate in the existing plan, but will have their base salary increased by a factor of 6 per cent. Each newly elected Councillor can then make their own decision, based on individual circumstances, on how to invest for retirement.

“We believe this arrangement strikes a reasonable balance,” says Councillor Danny Breen, Chair of the Finance and Administration Standing Committee. “It requires existing councillors to begin paying for their pensions and gives new Councillors more choice in structuring their personal retirement plans.”

 
For further information:
Jennifer Mills
Communications Officer
City of St. John's
Phone: (709) 570-2037
Cell: (709) 690-7586
E-mail: jmills@stjohns.ca

Dennis O'Keefe
Mayor
City of St. John's
Phone: (709) 576-8477
Cell: (709) 685-5657
E-mail: dokeefe@stjohns.ca

Danny Breen
Ward 1 Councillor
Chair, Finance and Administration Standing Committee
City of St. John’s
Phone: (709) 576-2332
Cell: (709) 687-9513
E-mail: dbreen@stjohns.ca