The Manitoba Teachers’ Society (MTS) Staff Pension Plan

your merged plan

Merger Update

January 1, 2024

The merger of The Manitoba Teachers’ Society Staff Pension Plan (“MTS Staff Pension Plan”) and the CAAT Pension Plan is subject to the Pension Benefits Act (Manitoba) and its regulations.

Next steps

Effective January 1, 2024 (“effective date”), all members of the MTS Staff Pension Plan started contributing to and earning a pension under CAAT’s DBplus plan design.

All employees hired on and after the effective date will be required to join DBplus on their date of hire.

What is my DBplus contribution rate?

Effective January 1, 2024, you and your employer started making contributions to DBplus based on a percentage of your eligible earnings indicated in the table below:

Employee contributions Employer contributions
8% 10%

For the merger to proceed, the Office of the Superintendent – Pension Commission (the “Manitoba Superintendent”) must approve the transfer of defined benefit assets. An application will be filed with the Manitoba Superintendent in the coming months. Once approved, MTS Staff Pension Plan members will be notified that their past pension benefits will be transferred to and replicated in the CAAT Pension Plan.

Who do I contact if I have questions about my pension?

Prior to the transfer of assets please send your inquiry to:
Sara Lauman, at Coughlin & Associates
Phone: 204-942-4438 ext. 3263
Email: slauman@coughlin.ca

Once the assets are transferred, you will be advised and thereafter you can send your inquiry to:
Manitoba Teachers’ Society member services at the CAAT Pension Plan
Phone: 1-800-210-7806
Email: caat.mts@mercer.com

Details about your CAAT Pension

If the Manitoba Superintendent consents to the merger, the total combined retirement pension for active members in the MTS Staff Pension Plan will be made up of two parts:

MTS Staff Pension Plan past pension + CAAT pension = Total annual pension payable from the CAAT Pension Plan

  • Your MTS Staff Pension Plan past pension is the defined benefit pension you have earned up to, and including, December 31, 2023
  • Your MTS Staff Pension Plan past pension will be replicated and payable from the CAAT Pension Plan once the assets are transferred
  • Your CAAT pension refers to the pension you will be earning under the DBplus plan design as of January 1, 2024

Enhancements

Conditional inflation protection - enhancements after you retire

Your DBplus pension, once in pay, will continue to grow with annual conditional inflation protection increases at a rate of 75% of the year-over-year percent increase in the Consumer Price Index (“CPI”) (up to a maximum increase of 8% with a carry forward provision for any amount above 8% in a given year), beginning January 1, 2025 (or from your pension commencement date, if later). These increases will allow your pension to continue to grow with the economy, maintaining your spending power in retirement. Inflation protection increases are conditional on the CAAT Pension Plan Funding Policy.

  • Any benefit you earn under the DBplus plan design will have annual conditional inflation protection increases applied at the beginning of each year your pension is in pay;
  • There will be no change to your accrued MTS Staff Pension benefit. As your current MTS Staff Pension Plan benefit does not have an indexation adjustment, it will not receive the conditional indexing adjustment under the CAAT Pension Plan.