Welcome to the website of York Branch
The York Branch website aims to keep members informed on branch activities; provide information on meeting schedules, branch advocacy and other areas of interest. Be sure to check back periodically for updates.
We have two membership meetings each year click to see meeting schedule. Click https://www.federalretirees.ca/en/node/1600/edit
Branch Reports
Jan. 2024 Update
The Christmas holiday season is passed, and now we are all hunkering down for winter. Many are heading off for better places, usually warmer and surely sunnier, for a visit or until the home weather improves. Traveler's abroad might think about the possibility of emergency travel assistance and register with MSH for this PSHCP coverage (see pshcp.ca).
Looking forward to 2024, how does it look? The PM’s plane broke down in Jamaica – is that a political augury, a comment on the state of Canada’s military, an omen for Canada in 2024, or just an unfortunate accident? He and his family got home, so perhaps the message, if any, is that we’ll pull through.
Newspapers reported a slew of new laws and taxes that are coming into force in 2024. Retirees need not fear increased CPP deductions, and have pension indexing of 4.8%. Association dues will increase (to annual rate $55.92 single and $72.60 double). PSHCP service provided by Canada Life is improving, reflecting hiring of more reps late last year. Service rates are now posted on the PSHCP website (with directions to register for MSH) – as of Jan. 9 the site showed that 98% of calls were answered within two minutes, and paper claims were handled within 7 days. This is thin consolation for some caught in the outlier group, but still gives us hope for the PDSP hand-over from Sun Life to Canada Life in July. The Phoenix fiasco still haunts us: one member recently received his severance pay – two years after actually retiring. At least this domestic software disaster is not as bad as the UK Horizon scandal, which reports say saw people sent to jail due to faulty software acquired by the Post Office. These messes came from program code written by people who were supposed to know what they were doing and understand what they wrote! Imagine if it was done via artificial intelligence, whose proponents boast that the why of results can’t be understood!
All this underlines the importance of Federal Retirees' work. We can influence the PSHCP admin authority, even though Association cannot deal directly with Canada Life or even see that service contract. Federal Retirees is lobbying the government for a role in changes to the dental plan, where we currently have none, and for a seat in the Pension Management board, all in the spirit of equity and fairness. If we don’t speak or ask, we don’t get or learn what is going on. This activity is led from the Association’s central office: members at large have an important role in making the Association and our concerns visible to our MPs across the country.
Something new to see: the web release of SAGE60. Our Ottawa staff are working on our digital communications. This complement to SAGE is scheduled for 22-Jan.
Web Content
We are constantly reviewing and updating our webpage hoping to make it friendlier and allow our readers to quickly search for information about the branch: its activities and the newest published items. Please check out the Latest Updates section to find the most current submission.
Frank Froude
Web Content Editor