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Federal Employee Pension Reforms: First Steps - on a Much Longer Journey

Author

Listed:
  • William B.P. Robson

    (C.D. Howe Institute)

  • Alexandre Laurin

    (C.D. Howe Institute)

Abstract

While Ottawa's proposed reforms to the pension plans of federal employees and MPs are a move in the right direction, the deep flaws in these plans require more fundamental revisions. The authors argue argue that more sweeping reforms are needed to achieve better funding and a more reasonable division of obligations and risks between taxpayers and public servants. The guaranteed incomes those plans promise participants are far more valuable, and their costs and obligations on taxpayers are far larger, than reported. Currently before Parliament, the new provisions include increasing employee contributions to the plans and raising eligibility ages for new employees' benefits. But the flaws in Ottawa's employee pension plans are so serious that these steps should - and almost certainly will - not be the end of the journey.

Suggested Citation

  • William B.P. Robson & Alexandre Laurin, 2012. "Federal Employee Pension Reforms: First Steps - on a Much Longer Journey," e-briefs 140, C.D. Howe Institute.
    • Handle: RePEc:cdh:ebrief:140
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    File URL: https://www.cdhowe.org/public-policy-research/federal-employee-pension-reforms-first-steps-%E2%80%93-much-longer-journey
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Alexandre Laurin & William Robson, 2010. "The Public-Sector Pension Bubble: Time to Confront the Unmeasured Cost of Ottawa's Pensions," e-briefs 108, C.D. Howe Institute.
    2. Alexandre Laurin & William B.P. Robson, 2012. "Achieving Balance, Spurring Growth: A Shadow Federal Budget for 2012," C.D. Howe Institute Commentary, C.D. Howe Institute, issue 344, March.
    3. James Pierlot & Faisal Siddiqi, 2011. "Legal for Life: Why Canadians Need a Lifetime Retirement Saving Limit," C.D. Howe Institute Commentary, C.D. Howe Institute, issue 336, October.
    4. Philippe Bergevin & William B.P. Robson, 2012. "More RRBs, Please! Why Ottawa Should Issue More Inflation-Indexed Bonds," C.D. Howe Institute Commentary, C.D. Howe Institute, issue 363, September.
    5. Alexandre Laurin & William B.P. Robson, 2009. "Supersized Superannuation: The Startling Fair-Value Cost of Federal Government Pensions," C.D. Howe Institute Backgrounder, C.D. Howe Institute, issue 122, December.
    6. Alexandre Laurin & William B.P. Robson, 2011. "Ottawa's Pension Gap: The Growing and Under-reported Cost of Federal Employee Pensions," e-briefs 127, C.D. Howe Institute.
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    Cited by:

    1. Adam Found & Peter Tomlinson, 2012. "Hiding in Plain Sight: The Harmful Impact of Provincial Business Property Taxes," C.D. Howe Institute Commentary, C.D. Howe Institute, issue 368, December.
    2. Richard Guay & Laurence Allaire, 2013. "Long-Term Returns: a Reality Check for Pension Funds and Retirement Savers," C.D. Howe Institute Commentary, C.D. Howe Institute, issue 395, December.
    3. Alex Laurin & William B.P. Robson, 2014. "Equipping Canadians for Success: A Shadow Budget for 2014," C.D. Howe Institute Commentary, C.D. Howe Institute, issue 399, January.
    4. Alex Laurin & William Robson, 2013. "Prudence and Opportunity: A Shadow Federal Budget for 2013," C.D. Howe Institute Commentary, C.D. Howe Institute, issue 375, March.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Pension Policy; Governance and Public Institutions; Canada; pension plan reforms; Public Service (PS) pension plan; MPs' pension plan;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions
    • J32 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Nonwage Labor Costs and Benefits; Retirement Plans; Private Pensions

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