The recent ratification of several collective agreements in the Province is expected to result in retroactive salary increases for many members in the plan. A retroactive salary adjustment may increase your pension if it increases your Best Five Year Average Pensionable Salary.
Salary for pension purposes is defined in The Civil Service Superannuation Act and generally includes your regular remuneration (with any eligible vacation cash-out) and excludes anything else that does not form part of your regular remuneration. Regular remuneration is typically determined by the employer and may be defined in a collective agreement or employment contract. If a retroactive increase is considered by the employer as pensionable salary, the employer will deduct pension contributions and report that salary to the CSSB.
Retroactive increases in pensionable earnings paid to employees in 2016 will be reported to us as part of the employer year end process in the first several months of 2017. If you leave employment in 2016, any retroactive salary amount that impacts your pensionable earnings would be used to determine your actual pension entitlement. We would do a recalculation to include retroactive salary paid to a former employee who has resigned, been dismissed, or died, if the former employee or his or her spouse, common-law partner or eligible survivor is entitled to a pension.
Retroactive salary increases do not impact transfer values that have previously been paid out of the plan. Any pension contributions deducted from a retroactive salary amount for someone who is no longer an employee and is not entitled to a pension would be refunded to the former employee.
Questions on the amount or timing of any retroactive increase should be directed to your Human Resources or payroll office.