Town Hall on Retirement Security Crisis Promotes Increasing CPP Contributions

SUDBURY, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Nov. 25, 2014) - Community advocates and retirees will gather at a town hall meeting on Tuesday evening to discuss how expanding the CPP is the best way to end the pension crisis currently facing people in Sudbury and across the country. Panelists Nicole Beaulieu, Executive Director of the Sudbury Workers Education & Advocacy Centre; Tom Rinelli, Mine Mill retiree; Gary Kinsman, member of the Sudbury Coalition Against Poverty; and Wyman MacKinnon, retiree and former president of CUPE local 4705 are united in their support for an expanded CPP.

"Expanding the CPP now will pay great dividends down the road and lift many people out of poverty. It's the smart thing to do," said MacKinnon.

"People on CPP who live in poverty are often in even worse situations than people on Ontario Works or ODSP since they are denied many of the benefits these people living in poverty are able to access. The anti-poverty and union movements need to come together to address the needs of older people living in poverty."

Here in Sudbury, 96% of those 65 or older had income from CPP in 2012, while only 7% had income from an RRSP.

"More than 11 million Canadians are on the job today without a workplace pension. Expanding the CPP will benefit all Canadian workers. A modest increase to CPP contributions will ensure as many Canadians as possible can retire with dignity. We can't afford to wait," said Paul Moist, national president of CUPE and host of the event.

"The CLC's plan to expand CPP contributions is our best bet to help all workers to have a secure pension when they retire, including young workers and precarious workers of today," added Beaulieu.

The Canadian Labour Congress, the national voice of the labour movement, represents 3.3 million Canadian workers. The CLC brings together Canada's national and international unions along with the provincial and territorial federations of labour and 111 district labour councils.

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