Plan changes for group 1

If you’re in group 1, learn how the changes affect you and improve your lifetime pension. You are a member of group 1 if you are not a police officer or firefighter.

Changes to early retirement reductions

Increasing the reduction factor for early retirement before age 60 improves equity because the cost is not paid by members who cannot afford to retire early, or don’t want to. The savings from this helps fund the improvement to the lifetime benefit for the majority of members.

Early retirement reductions for service earned on or after January 1, 2022, are as follows:

• If you have at least two years of contributory service and retire before age 60, your reduction is 6.2 per cent per year before age 60
• If you have less than two years of contributory service and retire before age 65, your reduction is 5.2 per cent per year before age 65
• There is no rule of 90 on new service

If you retire partway through a year, early retirement reductions are pro-rated for that year.

Your retirement is unreduced if:

• You retire at age 60 or older with at least two years of contributory service
• You retire at age 65 with any amount of service

Improved lifetime pension

The changes result in an improved lifetime pension for the majority of members. The benefit improvement is partially funded by reducing early retirement subsidies and eliminating the temporary bridge benefit (for group 1 only) on service earned on or after January 1, 2022.