Pensions should not be a union issue.
Most of us will get old. When we do we will still need a roof over our heads and food on the table. Unfortunately, most Canadians would rather overspend than underspend.They don’t save for the future.
Compulsory retirement savings are essential. Some employers are willing and able to contribute to pension plans along with their employees and all employers can collect retirement savings just as easily as they can collect income tax.
Canada Pension Plan contributions need to be increased so that fewer seniors will wind up as a burden on the country. RRSPs are a good option for extra retirement income for the rich but of little value to lower income earners. All pensions must be portable and in the employee’s name so that companies cannot declare that they have lost their employees’ pensions in the bankruptcies.
Pension amounts must be guaranteed, not at the mercy of the markets. I hope our elected members will remember this in their negotiations with unions. I hope they will also start by adjusting their own pension entitlements to match those they negotiate for the rest of us.
Our future taxpayers cannot afford to add millions more poor people to our annual expenses. We must start saving for an independent future.
Pat Carson,
Sidney