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Questions about Bill 124? Visit our News section and Bill 124 FAQs in both the working members and retired members sections.

Bill 124 and new collective agreements: Retroactive salary increases and your pension

Looking for other Bill 124 and new collective agreement stories? 

> Understand the retroactive salary adjustment process
> Find out how to check your status and what it means

To help you plan for your retirement, we want to answer the most common question we've received about retroactive salary adjustments. See an example showing how we'll calculate the increase to your pension, and how you can estimate your salary when using the pension calculator.

I’m planning to retire within the next year or two. How will the increases due to Bill 124 and new collective agreements affect my pension?

If you worked during the school years affected by Bill 124 and/or collective agreements, we’ll receive your updated salary information from your employer. Once we receive and process the revised salary information, we’ll update your account. If those years are in your best-five years of salary, they’ll increase the pension you’re eligible to receive when you retire.

How much will your pension increase? The exact amount depends on a few things, including your credited service and salary. For a typical full-time teacher close to retirement, the increase could be about $300 gross per month.

Sample calculation assumptions (for context only)

  • Current salary of $100,000
  • Average best-five salary of $99,802 (prior to Bill 124/new collective agreement)
  • 24 years of credited service

Salaries

School year beginningOriginalIncrease*Adjusted
Sept. 1, 2020$99,0101.5%$100,495
Sept. 1, 2021$100,0004.25%$104,250
Sept. 1, 2022$100,0007.25%$107,250
Sept. 1, 2023$100,00010.25%$110,250
Sept. 1, 2024$100,00013.0%$113,000
Average best-five salary$99,802 $107,049

* Increases shown are compounded from the prior year (i.e. 0.75% salary increase in 2019 plus 0.75% in 2020 totals 1.5% in 2020, 1.5% in 2020 plus 2.75% in 2021 totals 4.25% in 2022, etc.)  

Monthly pension breakdown

 FormulaTotal pensionCPP adjustmentLifetime pension
Original2% x 24 x $99,802 / 12$3,992$599$3,393
Adjusted2% x 24 x $107,049 / 12$4,282$599$3,683
Difference $290$0$290

 

The gross monthly pension increase is approximately $300. Note that this estimate does NOT include potential reductions such as higher survivor option (i.e. automatic 60% for eligible spouse) or a 10-year pension guarantee. If we factor these in, the increase will be less. It also assumes you worked or bought back service for each year and that all five years fall into your best-five years of salary. 

Estimate your salary

This chart can help you estimate what your 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 annualized salary will be after retroactive salary increases due to Bill 124 and new collective agreements have been processed:

 For example:
School yearIncreaseSalary on
Jan. 1, 2024
New salary
2023-202410.25%$100,000$110,250
2024-202513.0%$100,000$113,000

 

For example, if your annualized salary on Jan. 1, 2024 was $100,000, your new salary will be approximately $110,250 [($100,000 x 10.25%) + $100,000 = $110,250] in 2023-2024, and $113,000 [($100,000 x 13.0%) + $100,000 = $113,000] in 2024-2025. We’ve used Jan. 1, 2024 as it’s the month when members didn’t have any adjustments yet due to Bill 124 and new collective agreements.

Important

These figures assume you’re eligible for Bill 124 retroactive salary increases and are covered by the new collective agreement reached in May 2024. It also assumes continuous, full-time service during these years.

This is just one example of the impact retroactive salary increases may have on a member’s pension. To estimate what your new salary will be, simply add your total increase to your salary from Jan. 1, 2024 for the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 school years. Use the adjusted salaries in the pension calculator to estimate your future pension.