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Municipal Pension Plan
On April 1, 2010, the Municipal Pension Plan (MPP) was implemented in the community social services sector. This page provides new CSSEA members with information on estimated employer cost, how to enrol your agency in the MPP, employee eligibility requirements and how to contact the MPP.
What is the MPP?
The Municipal Pension Plan is a public sector pension plan administered by the British Columbia Pension Corporation. It is the same plan that covers employees in the municipal sector, health sector and many other employee groups across the province.
The Municipal Pension Plan is a defined benefit plan. This means the pension benefit is based on a formula of highest average salary and pensionable service. Once an employee or plan member has accrued two years of service in the MPP, the plan member is guaranteed a pension.
Employer cost
For new CSSEA members, the Municipal Pension Plan is one of the monetary provisions of the collective agreement that takes effect four months from the date your agency becomes a designated member of CSSEA. CSSEA’s new certification cost estimator includes a calculation for estimating employer MPP costs.
Your employer’s contribution rate is based on the ages, genders, and pensionable salaries of your agency’s plan members. As a guideline, the contribution rate for CSSEA members on July 1, 2010, averaged 8.0 percent of pensionable salaries.
Employer enrolment
New CSSEA members are encouraged to:
- contact your HRLR Consultant for advice and assistance
- contact the MPP directly to introduce yourself as a CSSEA member and get direction regarding the enrolment process. The MPP can be reached toll-free at 1.800.668.6335
- identify all eligible employees and communicate to them when and how they become eligible to enroll
- enroll all eligible and participating bargaining unit employees as soon as possible following confirmation of CSSEA membership
- begin paying your employer contributions on the date the monetary provisions of the collective agreement take effect for your agency, which is four months from the date your agency becomes a designated member of CSSEA
A number of employer manuals have been developed by the MPP to assist employers, including:
Employee eligibility
Various eligibility requirements, which must be met in order for employees to be enrolled in the Municipal Pension Plan, are summarized below:
- Employees who are 18 years or older and under the age of 71 at the time of enrolment
- Employees who are permanent, full-time employees. Definition of full-time employee is a permanent employee; full-time hours are normally determined through the terms and conditions of employment, including collective agreements. However, the minimum number of hours considered full-time by the Municipal Pension Plan is 35 hours per week or 1,820 hours per year
- Employees who are not permanent (i.e. temporary) employees but who have worked on a continuous full-time basis with the same employer for one year
- Employees who are already contributing to the Municipal Pension Plan through another employer
- New employees who were contributing to the Municipal Pension Plan through a previous employer where the break in employment is 30 days or less
- Employees working less than full-time (including part-time, casual, or temporary staff) who have completed two years of continuous employment and earned at least 35 percent of Canada Pension Plan’s Yearly Maximum Pensionable Earnings (YMPE) in each of two consecutive calendar years
Employee waiver
If your agency is new to the Municipal Pension Plan, eligible employees, except those who are active plan members, that are on record as of the effective date of the employer enrolment in MPP, have 90 days to opt out of the MPP by signing a Waiver of Pension Coverage form.
For more information
For more information about the Municipal Pension Plan, visit the MPP's website at mpp.pensionsbc.ca.
CSSEA - Excellence and Innovation in Human Resources and Labour Relations
Email: cssea@cssea.bc.ca | Phone: 604.687.7220 | Fax: 604.687.7266 | Toll Free: 1.800.377.3340 |
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what is the MPP?