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Bell Pensioners' Group Fall 2015 President's Report Presented by Dan Mc Donald.

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Presentation on theme: "Bell Pensioners' Group Fall 2015 President's Report Presented by Dan Mc Donald."— Presentation transcript:

1 Bell Pensioners' Group Fall 2015 President's Report Presented by Dan Mc Donald

2 2 BPG Celebrates 20 Years! I would like to take this opportunity to underline BPG’s twenty years of existence in 2015, also want to provide my sincere recognition to those who have created and supported our organization through all these years Key Initiatives: 1994 Confederation Life Liquidation (Supplementary Pension Plan not guaranteed) 1995 Creation of BPG 1996 Enhancement agreement signed with Bell (Contribution would total $15M over 5 years) 2002 Approved unsecured creditors (received a 5th interim distribution resulting in a cumulative dividend to date of 100 cents on the dollar) 2006 Representation to BCE concerning Pensioners’ rights in relation to the Teachers / BCE buy out negotiation 2009 BPG participated in consultations re. changes to federal pension legislation 2014 participated in federal government consultation re. proposal to introduce Target Benefit Plans

3 3 Agenda Bell Valuation report Bell / Sun Life Deal Target Benefit plan BPG 2015 Survey results BPG Board of Directors

4 4 Bell Plan Solvency Ratio $ Million Year-End 2014 Year-End 2013 Year-End 2012 Year-End 2011 Market Value of Assets (Net of Wind-Up Expenses) 14,963.013,461.813,341.912,322.8 Liability, assuming Plan is wound up 16,123.014,453.115,874.615,457.4 Surplus/(Shortfall)(1160.0)(991.3)(2,532.7)(3,134.6) Solvency Ratio92.8%93.1%84.0%79.7% Note: These numbers represent Bell Canada results only

5 5 Bell / Sun Life Deal Met with Bell to obtain a greater understanding of its deal with Sun Life announced in February Bell is essentially insuring $5B, or roughly half of its DB pension plan liability, against longevity risk (i.e., the risk that Bell will face higher costs because pensioners live longer than expected) Agreement is transparent from a pensioner's perspective (there are no changes with respect to the pensions and benefits they receive from Bell) and Bell continues to be accountable for pension payments Agreement does not cover the BCE, Bell Aliant, and Telebec pension plans

6 6 Bell / Sun Life Deal Details of the Sun Life deal:  Bell Canada pension plan pays monthly premiums to Sun Life and, in exchange, Sun Life makes monthly pension payments into the plan for the lifetime of existing DB pensioners (both based on an agreed-to mortality table)  The only money that actually changes hands between the two parties over the course of the 40-year agreement is the difference between the predicted and actual pension payments, an amount that is relatively small

7 7 Conclusion:  This is one more component of Bell's long-term strategy to reduce various risks related to its DB pension plan liability, thereby adding an extra layer of financial protection for the pension promise Bell / Sun Life Deal

8 8 Government Response on Target Benefit Plan The BPG Position … We believe that each pensioner must be given the right to choose whether to continue with his or her DB Pension Plan or move to the TBP plan First, I am very pleased to advise you that our collective efforts with members, consultants and lobbyists to influence the government have paid off Each of the 3 major Federal parties went at least some way towards addressing our concern prior to the election

9 9 COMMITMENTS ON TARGET BENEFIT PLANS. Tom Mulcair quoted in iPolitics, January 27: “A deal is a deal is a deal,” …“Nobody should be ever allowed retroactively to change your pension deal. That’s what you bought, that’s what paid for and that should be respected.” The NDP would also move to better protect workers’ pensions when a company goes bankrupt. Tom Mulcair in a video aired by CKNW Vancouver, October 7: “When Canadians pay into their pensions, they’re keeping up their end of the bargain. I’m going to make sure their employer honours their promise as well.” (https://youtu.be/MyRnLXpTv3s)https://youtu.be/MyRnLXpTv3s Kevin Sorenson in Hansard, June 15: “Current pensioners and retirees should be assured that it is not our intention to convert any pensions to target benefit plans without the explicit consent of that individual. A retired person's plan would not be converted unless that individual expressed a desire to convert the pension or agreed to do so.” Note: Only with regard to pensions for retired government employees, Stephen Harper has stated (Letter, released October 1): “We will not be moving away from the current defined benefit plan to a defined contribution plan, target benefit plan, or any other shared- risk model. The public service pension plan is solid and fully-funded, and there is no need to make any such changes.” Justin Trudeau in a letter to the President of the National Association of Federal Retirees, July 23: “I continue to believe that while they [target benefit plans] make sense in certain circumstances, any changes to existing Defined Benefit Pensions (DBP) should be made on a going-forward basis. DBPs, which have already [been] paid for by employees and pensioners, should not retroactively be changed into TBPs.” Note: Trudeau’s letter to government employees of September 25 did not address pensions.

10 10 Target Benefit Plan  I would like to take this opportunity to thank our Government Relations team that worked so hard with our Lobbyist to obtain this statement from our Government.  I would also like to thank all members who approached their MPs to add pressure in order to support our goal. This is a major victory for all defined benefit pension plan members across the country.

11 11 BPG Member Survey Objectives Main objective: Assess members’ satisfaction with the services and information provided by BPG. Assess the level of awareness and understanding of the mandate of BPG and of the services it offers Assess if BPG is currently meeting members’ expectations Assess members’ perception of the information they get from BPG (relevancy, interest, etc.) and their level of satisfaction regarding this information (Newsletter, Website, Social Media) Assess perception and satisfaction regarding AGMs and gain a better understanding of reasons why members do or do not attend those annual meetings

12 12 Survey Objectives cont’d Secondary objective: Assess members’ satisfaction with the services provided by the Bell Benefits and Manulife groups. Assess their level of satisfaction with the agents of the Employee Services Contact Centre (courtesy, knowledge of the benefits plan, etc.) Assess level of satisfaction with the settlement of their claims

13 13 BPG Survey Results - Executive Summary Members’ perception of BPG is highly positive: BPG’s goal, mandate and services are very well known by its members. Members are highly satisfied with the services offered by BPG, believe BPG is meeting their expectations and fully trust the organization appropriately represents their needs. High level of satisfaction regarding the information provided by BPG through various means. Newsletter is the communication tool currently reaching most members. Readership and appreciation of its content are very high. Website is now accessed by over 8 out of 10 respondents mostly when they receive emails from BPG. Although overall satisfaction with the website is high, survey shows areas where it could still be improved.

14 14 BPG Survey Results - Executive Summary cont’d Facebook and LinkedIn pages are means of communication used by a minority of the members. Raising awareness among younger pensioners should be considered. Members attending BPG meetings are highly satisfied with their meeting experience but… About one of two respondents never attend meetings, which explains why this particular BPG service is perceived as being the least important. Survey results show that younger pensioners are less likely to attend meetings. If reaching them is key for BPG, we may want to consider other ways to attract or share the meeting experiences with them.

15 15 BPG Survey Results - Executive Summary cont’d The vast majority of respondents are satisfied with both the services provided by the agents of the Bell Benefits and Manulife Groups and the settlement of their claims. Next Steps We are reviewing the results and comments you provided in detail in order to develop an action plan to help us better serve your needs. We will get back to you with the key initiatives that make up that action plan in Q1 2016.

16 16 2015 PIC Election I am happy to inform you that the four PIC candidates proposed by BPG have been nominated and elected: Peter Dilworth as PIC rep. for Ontario, with Sue Dawes as alternate Ontario rep. and Michel Doyon as PIC rep. for Quebec, with Yvan Dutrisac as the Quebec alternate. Thanks to all of you who supported the nominations. I would also like to thank Allison Henriques for her dedication as our PIC rep for Ontario.

17 BPG Board Changes Departures Robert Guay (Chapter Chair Montreal) Norm Kelly (Chapter Chair Telebec) Jean-Luc Geha (Director Audit Committee) Michel Doyon ( Chair Audit Committee) Bob Farmer (PC Member & Past President) Arrivals Gayle Duchene (Board Secretary) Peter Dilworth (Chair Audit Committee) Jean-Luc Taschereau (Chapter Chair Montreal) Claude Vachon (Chapter Chair Telebec) Dave Palmer ( PC Chair) Denis Henry (PC & BPG rep. on CFP Board) Hélène D. Lefebvre (Nominations Committee Member)

18 18 BPG Board Dan Mc Donald (President) Patte Seaton (Vice-President Ontario) Penny Gilray (Treasurer) Gayle Duchene (Secretary) Roberte Cadieux Yvan Dutrisac Marg Eades Peter Dilworth Louise Touchette Sue Dawes Dave Palmer Denis Henry Hélène D. Lefebvre Chapter Chairs Marlyn Easterbrook(Ottawa) Titus Ramkhalawansingh (Ontario Central) Don Graham (SW Ontario) Jean-Luc Taschereau (Montreal) Jean Lamer (Quebec) Claude Vachon (Telebec)

19 Q & A


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