You will be asked to choose your contribution rate from the following options:

*Default rate if no choice is submitted

Contributions for employees assigned to the W.E.C. will be adjusted to be equivalent to contributions for regular employees working on a forty (40) hour schedule as outlined in the CBA.

To choose your contribution rate, you will be asked to submit the Contribution Choice Election Form by December 9. You will have the opportunity to fill the form during the education sessions on November 19 and 20 and return it onsite to Sabrina Lévesque.

If you choose to complete your form at a later date, you can submit it by email to TotalRewardsCanada@molsoncoors.com or by mail to:

Molson Coors Benefits Team
111, Robert-Bourassa Boulevard, 9th floor
Montréal, QC
H3C 2M1

If you do not have a copy of the form, you can request one from HR.

Note that your previous contribution rate under the defined contribution component of the Molson Canada Pension Plan for Hourly Employees in Ontario and Atlantic Canada (the Molson Plan) (administered by Manulife) will not be carried over into the CAAT Pension Plan.

If you do not submit a valid form by the deadline, you will be enrolled at the default contribution rate of 5% with a matching contribution of 5% from Molson Coors.

Yes. You will be able to change your contribution rate on a quarterly basis during a designated election window.

Yes. By November 30 of the year you turn 71, you will have to stop contributing to DBplus and start collecting your pension by December 1 of that year, even if you continue working. This is a Federal Income Tax Act rule. 

Your DBplus pension is calculated using a formula so that, when you retire, you can estimate the annual pension you will receive when you retire.

The formula is made up of two parts:

a)    Annual Base Pension: The annual base pension is calculated at the end of each year that you and your employer contribute. The pension formula adds your contributions plus the contributions your employer makes on your behalf and multiplies them by a pension factor of 9.5%. 

The Annual Pension Factor is subject to the CAAT Pension Plan Funding Policy. You can find the Funding Policy on CAAT’s website and at the bottom of this web page.

b)    Conditional Average Industrial Wage (AIW) enhancements: At the start of each year in which you are a contributing member, AIW enhancements may be applied to the total pension you earned in DBplus to the end of the previous year, subject to the CAAT Plan’s Funding Policy. Calculated by Statistics Canada, AIW represents the growth in wages over time. Any amount that has been granted is a permanent increase to your pension that will not be reduced.

To learn more about the Funding Policy visit the Funding page on CAAT’s website.

No, CAAT does not have a vesting period. Once you’re enrolled, you are immediately vested. 

Conditional inflation protection comes in two forms for DBplus pensions: Average Industrial Wage (AIW) enhancements applied to your benefits prior to retirement and inflation protection increases on your pension when you retire.

Conditional AIW enhancements grow DBplus pensions while a member works. At the start of each year, an AIW enhancement is applied to the total DBplus pension earned up until the end of the previous year. These annual AIW enhancements are based on the year-over-year percentage increase in Canada's AIW index, measured from July 1 to June 30.

In retirement, conditional inflation protection increases will be applied to pensions in pay to help protect the purchasing power of your pension. Inflation protection is applied annually at the beginning of each year. This is measured from September 1 to August 31 each year. The Plan has granted conditional inflation protection every year since 2007.

The decision to grant the AIW enhancement and inflation protection is made based on the funded status of the CAAT Pension Plan, according to its Funding Policy. Once granted, these benefits cannot be taken away.

AIW enhancements have been granted since the inception of DBplus. Historical AIW increases can be seen here.

Total employee and employer contributions to DBplus each calendar year are subject to Income Tax Act limits. This means contributions will stop when the Money Purchase limit is reached or contributions reach 18% of compensation, whichever comes first. This limit increases each year and is published by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).

You can use CAAT’s DBplus Pension Estimator to see an estimate of the starting annual pension at retirement and the value over your lifetime in retirement.

• Log into your My Pension account: member.caatpension.ca.
• Select “Estimate your pension” from the menu on the left side of your screen.
• Once you have read and agreed to the Terms of Use, click “Start”.
• Enter your date of birth, earnings, and enrolment date, then select “Calculate”.

You may change certain assumptions like your age or date of retirement. Remember to select “Calculate again” whenever you change an assumption.

Yes. Your DBplus pension contributions are tax-deductible. In addition, since your contributions are deducted from your income before taxes, this reduces your taxable income (the amount on which your taxes are deducted). Like a DC plan, this has a similar effect as an RRSP contribution – but your employer reduces your tax right away, so that you don't have to wait until you file your tax return.

While your contributions do not immediately impact your RRSP contribution room, the benefit you build with them each year generates a pension adjustment which does reduce your RRSP contribution room in the following year.  

A pension adjustment reflects the deemed value of the pension benefit you earn under the CAAT Plan each tax year. This doesn’t affect your reported income, but it reduces your RRSP contribution room for the following year. That’s because you and your employer have contributed and you have earned a retirement benefit, as a result of your participation in the CAAT Plan.

Pension adjustments are calculated each year and are reported on your T4. The Income Tax Act limits tax-deductible contributions to your RRSPs to 18% of your previous year's earned income, plus any unused RRSP room from prior years, minus the pension adjustment.

Visit the CRA website for a summary of contribution limits. Please consult with your financial advisor to ensure your RRSP contributions are within the limits outlined by the CRA.

In retirement, your pension income becomes taxable. This means that income tax is deducted from your monthly pension payments before it is deposited in your account. The amount of tax deducted depends on standard tax rates and any applicable deductions.

After you retire, in February of each year, you will receive your T4A tax slip from CAAT. It will indicate the total pension paid to you and the tax deducted from your pension during the year. You may choose to increase the amount deducted from your pension, especially if you receive income from other sources, such as investment and employment earnings. Please consult your financial advisor about these matters.

For specific questions about income tax and your pension, please visit CAAT’s Support Centre.

No. Pension benefits are generally locked in under pension legislation and cannot be withdrawn while you are actively employed by a participating CAAT employer.

If you leave Molson Coors, your CAAT membership generally continues for 24 months before ending, meaning that you and Molson Coors will stop making contributions but your funds will remain in the plan and your pension will keep growing with conditional AIW enhancements. Once your membership ends, you will be provided with the pension options available to you under the Plan and applicable pension legislation.

There are limited exceptions, such as cases involving shortened life expectancy, where earlier access may be permitted under applicable pension legislation. These exceptions are based on pension legislation in a member’s jurisdiction of employment.

No, you cannot contribute more than your required contributions to your DBplus pension. However, once you are enrolled, you can choose to participate and grow your tax-sheltered retirement savings in the CAAT Plan’s GROWTHplus Investment Account and benefit from the Plan’s investment returns.

The GROWTHplus Investment Account is an optional savings account for CAAT Pension Plan members to grow their tax-sheltered retirement savings and benefit from CAAT’s investment returns.

Once you are enrolled in the CAAT Plan, you can initiate a transfer to GROWTHplus from an existing tax-sheltered Canadian savings account, such as an RRSP, RPP, or a LIRA.

There is no limit to the amount of funds you can transfer into your GROWTHplus account. You can transfer-in as often as you would like, up until the end of the year you turn 70, provided you are a resident of Canada for income tax purposes.

With GROWTHplus, Plan members can build more financial flexibility into their retirement planning, together with the secure lifetime pension they already have with CAAT. GROWTHplus does not replace or change the pension members earn or receive from the CAAT Plan. To learn more information about GROWTHplus visit the GROWTHplus page on CAAT’s website.

CAAT’s team of investment professionals oversees the Plan's investment strategy as set out in its Board of Trustees-approved investment policies. They select investment management firms, funds, and co-investments that meet CAAT’s criteria and quality standards, and they monitor performance against targets for both returns and risk.

Comprehensive information – including investment strategy, investment policies, responsible investing, information about asset mix and performance, and the investment team – can be found on the website in the Investments section and in the Plan’s Annual Report.

As a jointly sponsored pension plan, CAAT is not reliant on the financial health of any single employer. Should an employer cease operation, there would be no impact on the members’ accumulated pensions. Your pension benefits would remain secure and you would still be eligible for future enhancements on your accrued pension

A decrease in funding levels will not impact benefits already earned. Accrued benefits, including enhancements, once granted, can never be reduced while the Plan is ongoing.

The CAAT Pension Plan Funding Policy defines six levels of Plan financial health and sets guidelines for the Plan governors to use reserves and conditional benefits to manage through periods of volatility, to keep the Plan sustainable over the long term to secure benefits while balancing fairness across the membership.

As the Plan rises through the levels in the Funding Policy, this can allow for enhancements to your pension. Similarly, if reserve levels decrease, conditional benefits may be paused. You can see the Funding Policy summary and read more on how the policy impacts various benefit features on CAAT’s website.

A change in funding level does not affect the percentage you or Molson Coors contribute to the Plan.

You can continue working and contributing to the Plan past age 65 without any interruption to your membership. You would simply continue to work, make contributions to the Plan, and watch your pension grow. However, as mentioned above, pursuant to the Income Tax Act, by November 30 of the year in which you turn 71, you will have to stop contributing to the Plan and start collecting your pension by December 1 of that year, even if you continue working.

Yes, CAAT will continue to pay you your regular monthly pension if you retire abroad. If you spend time during the year abroad, your pension payment will continue to be deposited into your Canadian bank account. Even if you relocate to another country permanently, you can choose to use the direct deposit service to a Canadian bank – or you can have your cheque (in Canadian funds) mailed to your foreign address.

Please note that the income tax deducted from your employment and government pensions may be affected by your new country of residence. The Canada Revenue Agency offers a variety of information that you should investigate before you leave.

CAAT only makes direct deposits to Canadian accounts. For a fee, you may be able to arrange with CAAT’s custodian, CIBC Mellon, to have your pension wired for deposit to your foreign account. Please be aware that your bank may also charge a fee for processing the wire transfer. Contact CIBC Mellon if you wish to pursue this.

Alternatively, you can request that your pension be paid by cheque, or have your pension deposited into a Canadian bank and access the account from abroad.

Once you’re enrolled in DBplus, you can purchase additional pension in DBplus so long as you have an eligible period of employment to purchase and you are an active member of the Plan at the time of your purchase request.

Visit the CAAT website for more information about the pension purchase process.

Yes. Your purchased DBplus pension grows with the same conditional AIW enhancements as your regular DBplus pension while you are actively employed. Once retired, your purchased DBplus pension will grow with the same conditional inflation protection as your regular pension (75% of the Consumer Price Index, or CPI).

GROWTHplus is a separate account for your personal tax-sheltered savings. With GROWTHplus you can grow your savings together with the secure defined benefit (DB) DBplus pension you have with CAAT. GROWTHplus is in addition to your lifetime pension and does not replace or change the pension you earn. Deposits to GROWTHplus are optional and your employer does not contribute to it like they do with your CAAT DB pension.

In comparison, when you make a purchase in DBplus, you are adding an additional amount of pension to your lifetime DB pension. This means the amount of pension you purchase becomes part of your total lifetime DB pension.

Visit the CAAT website for more information about GROWTHplus.