A multi-employer JSPP, like the UPP, is a contributory defined benefit pension plan. This means employers and employees make contributions, and pension amounts are based on a formula using earnings and service.
There are a number of key differentiators of the multi-employer JSPP model. Unlike the current university pension plans – in which a single employer bears the full risks and costs of funding shortfalls, and members have little or no say in plan decisions – in a multi-employer JSPP, plan governance, costs and risks are shared equally between employers and members. Both are also jointly responsible for oversight of the plan, including decisions about the terms and conditions of the plan, amendments, and appointing a plan administrator.
JSPPs as a model for pension plan governance are not new – some of the largest pension plans in the province are JSPPs, including the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (Teachers’), Ontario Municipal Employees’ Retirement System (OMERS), Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan (HOOPP) and OPSEU Pension Trust (OPTrust). These plans have a long history, and are internationally respected for their ability to provide secure, high-quality pensions.
A new JSPP is designed to enhance the long-term sustainability of defined benefit pension plans in the university sector for generations to come, offering the key advantages of:
- Joint governance, where university administrations, and the unions and faculty associations that represent plan members, have an equal say in plan design, funding and administration.
- Greater transparency into plan operations, funding, and decision-making through joint governance and open information-sharing.
- Clear and explicit sharing of risk between employers and plan members.
- More stable and predictable contributions from employers and plan members.
More background information on the process leading to the establishment of the UPP may be found here.