Updates on Plan Changes

April 15, 2025 Update

Requests for assistance with paperwork and other inquiries have increased sharply in the last few days and Payroll and Pension Services is working diligently to address these.  However, the volume of inquiries means that turnaround times could be a few days longer than you've been accustomed too.  Regardless, all inquiries will be addressed as soon as possible. 

With regard to CAAT purchase requests, CAAT has informed us that their service standard for returning purchase requests is 30 days, and the purchase maximums will be valid for 90 days after that.  Please be aware of these time horizons when preparing your paperwork.

CAAT has also recently sent out information about upcoming webinars, one of which is specifically about making purchases, and coming soon on April 24, 2025.  Please use this link to further explore these webinars and ensure you're looking at the information for DBPlus rather than DBPrime. 

https://www.caatpension.ca/members/planning-your-retirement/member-presentation

April 11, 2025 Update

Pension option packages have started to arrive in homes.  If you do not receive yours within the next week or two, please reach out to Payroll and Pension Services to request it.  At this time, members are encouraged to use these option packages to facilitate discussions and obtain professional advice. 

March 25, 2025 Update

Effective March 31, 2025 any new transfer authorization requests will be held until the wind up is completed, so possibly September-November.  This is mandatory for submitting the required filings to FSRA in order to complete the wind up.  Any authorizations that have already been sent in with the paperwork completed in good order will still be processed in April. This will mostly affect former employees that still have account balances in our legacy plans who are trying to transfer them out during the wind up period.

Any retirements that have been officially declared and submitted to HR will still be processed as if they were not part of the wind up, and without delays.  For example, a June 30 retirement that was declared in September of last year with paperwork received in good order by June 30 will be processed within the usual 60-day timeframe without regard for the windup.  Any retirements submitted after the January 31 stated deadline, for example an ad hoc May 31 retirement with short notice, will be delayed until all payouts are processed in September-November.

March 11, 2025 Update

In consultation with the Office of Payroll and Pension Services and Eckler Ltd., the LUFA Pension Committee has developed communication for its members about the timeline of events regarding the Combined Plan asset transfer and individual member options.  The LUFA Pension Committee has volunteered to share this communication with the University community in order for all to benefit from the information.  You can access the communication, plus a graphical representation of the timeline itself here:

• Explanation of Events
• Graphical Representation of Timeline

Members are encouraged, as always, to educate themselves on all aspects of the wind up, but are especially encouraged to draw their attention to two events in particular, which are when option packages arrive in homes, and when individual account balances are transferred out of the plan, as these two events require member involvement/oversight.

February 20, 2025 Update

In ongoing planning with the Actuary, we now have an estimated timeframe for option packages to hit homes, which is planned for early April, barring any regulatory delays.  We have also estimated that the transfers of individual account balances could happen sometime in September or October, also barring any regulatory delays. This means that plan members will have plenty of time to weigh their decisions and work with their financial advisors before needing to send in their paperwork, an estimated 150 days from the time they receive their option packages until an account balance will be moved out of the plan.  The University is also planning to offer some information sessions and recordings of these sessions around the same time that option packages are sent out, to assist the University community in understanding their options.  Please note, these will be information sessions on the plan wind up, not on making a CAAT purchase.  CAAT is a third party provider and offers their own information sessions, webinars, and recordings, available to all CAAT members through their member portal.  In the meantime, please continue to monitor this page and the FAQ page for updates.

January 8, 2025 Update

Asset transfer and wind up notices have started to arrive at homes now that the postal strike is over.  No action is required by any plan members at this time, these notices are required by the regulator to move the wind up process along.  Option packages are still expected to hit homes towards the middle of 2025.  An FAQ resources has been developed to answer ongoing questions that plan members might have, available here.

October 18, 2024 Update

Filings and regulatory processes are underway to create a third pension plan to facilitate a windup.  The Actuary expects plan wind-up to be completed sometime in the second half of 2025 and members will receive option packages at that point. 

June 26, 2024 Letter from Eckler Ltd.

We are writing to you on behalf of Lakehead University to advise you about some upcoming changes to your pension plan arrangements from the Lakehead University Employee Pension Plan and the Pension Plan for Professional and Administrative Staff of Lakehead University.

In collaboration with employee representatives, Lakehead University has agreed to wind up the Plan.  However, due to restrictions in the Ontario pension legislation, the Plan cannot be fully wound up at this time.  Therefore, a new registered pension plan will be created and the defined contribution (“DC”) account balances will be transferred to the new plan.  Once the DC accounts have been transferred, the new plan will be wound up and you will be provided with a pension option election form setting out all of your options and relevant amounts.

We will continue to communicate with you, including providing you with notices as required by law, as this process progresses.  In the meantime, if you have any questions, please send an email to Clint Mason at crmason@lakeheadu.ca or call 807-343-8010 x7287 or Tara Schaan at tschaan@eckler.ca or call 204-988-1582.