With the festive winter season upon us, Federal Retirees’ president and CEO wanted to say “thank you” in their own words.
As we approach the end of 2023, we want to thank each and every one of our members for choosing to join our Association. Your continued support allows us to do our important work of fighting for federal retirees’ hard-earned pensions and advocating for safe, dignified retirements for all Canadians.
Below, you’ll find holiday messages from our president, Roy Goodall, and CEO, Anthony Pizzino, who are sharing their reflections on a challenging but productive year, and their hopes for 2024.
A holiday message from the president
There’s no doubt 2023 has been a trying year for the Association — the transition of the Public Service Health Care Plan from Sun Life to Canada Life has resulted in serious problems for some of our members and caused undue stress for many. Yet, there is hope that that situation is improving, with shorter wait times and some responsiveness from the Treasury Board and Canada Life. Indeed, I would argue that one of our successes was that we secured a meeting with Treasury Board president Anita Anand in the autumn. She was attentive and genuinely listened to our issues. We have also met with Canada Life’s top executives.
Before I list other successes, I want to say that there would be no list without the dedicated support of our many volunteers from coast to coast to coast. Thank you for all you do.
Among this year’s wins is a string of very successful 60th anniversary celebrations, some of which I was fortunate enough to attend. Having 60 years of advocacy under our belts is an accomplishment itself and one that I’m pleased many branches decided to mark.
In addition to those events, we also worked hard on the advocacy front, having made a number of submissions to parliamentary committees. We’ve submitted our recommendations for Budget 2024 to the finance committee. This was the culmination of some great work by a team of volunteers who held local consultation events and collected input from the membership at large. We also made a brief submission in response to public consultations on the Safe Long-term Care Act.
Our branches have also worked hard to connect with MPs over the past year, and these efforts will ramp up as we get closer to a federal election. Our board of directors has done the same. Roland Wells, director for the Atlantic district, has met with his MP and the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), on the marriage after 60 issue. PSAC is also pushing the government on this discriminatory policy. We are also working to establish closer ties with the RCMP Veterans’ Association board of directors.
Finally, we’ve had some success in articulating the facts on the Canada Pension Plan and why it’s important that Alberta remain in it. Between an op-ed in the Globe and Mail, podcasts and radio programs, CEO Anthony Pizzino and some of our board directors have clearly and responsibly presented the facts.
It’s also looking like another record recruitment year that was boosted by our 60th anniversary travel contest that saw 19,344 members participate and generated 1,219 new member referrals. At the end of the third quarter, we had already exceeded last year’s total net membership gains with plus 2,043 new members, and there’s still three months yet to be counted!
As the year comes to a close, let’s remember that the holidays — however you choose to mark them — are about family time. I’m looking forward to spending some quality time with my three grandchildren, and I hope you have earmarked some relaxing time with loved ones, too. I wish a very merry Christmas to those who celebrate and happy holidays to all.
Roy Goodall
A holiday message from the CEO
Dear members,
As 2023 draws to a close, and I reflect on all that has transpired this past year, I am reminded of the importance of our members who are at the heart of our Association. Your support allows us to continue delivering the great work done by staff and volunteers.
Sometimes, there is a tendency for us to focus on the year’s challenges. I know that from July on, many members had problems with the Public Service Health Care Plan transition to Canada Life. Our staff was overwhelmed with calls and emails from members who were unable to reach the new provider for assistance and had nowhere else to turn. We responded by bringing in some temporary staff to provide information and assistance to members. And we will continue this support as long as required.
I would instead like to take a moment to look at some of the year’s many positive accomplishments. One highlight was the success of our annual meeting of members in June. The post-event survey and high satisfaction levels confirmed that the meeting was a big success. The volunteer awards and dinner in particular met with plenty of accolades, and it provided us with a new model going forward.
We continued to improve our visibility as an organization, and I took it as a positive sign that the Globe and Mail approached us to provide our opinion on the proposed Alberta Pension Plan. To me, that showed that the Globe’s editors see us as thought leaders and, with some fast teamwork, we were able to pull together an op-ed on their short timelines. The Ottawa Citizen, Le Droit and other regional papers have also run our op-eds.
I would also like to look ahead to 2024. We will continue the work to improve our Association’s visibility when we implement the roadmap for our digital communications and marketing initiatives and begin the necessary work to redevelop the Association’s outdated website. We have completed a user-experience audit of the website that has given us precious information that will inform the redesign. We will be looking for your feedback as we embark on these important projects in 2024.
Next year will also be time to renew the Association’s strategic plan. The national board of directors and the senior management team have already laid the groundwork for the new plan, which, once approved by the board, will be shared and discussed with members and volunteers.
As the Association’s 60th anniversary wraps up, we have created a legacy project in the form of Sage60, our new digital magazine. It will debut in January and will appear quarterly as an add-on to the print version of Sage. All Sage60 content will be original and produced by our award-winning team of journalists. Look for this digital-only magazine in January, April, July and October, one month after Sage’s print editions publish.
Finally, I continue to be inspired by everyone in our community who helps to make a difference in the lives of our members — volunteers at all levels who commit their time to support members and advocate on behalf of the Association, and our staff who are part of a remarkable professional team ensuring our operations run smoothly and our strategic priorities remain on track. You all have my sincerest thanks!
In addition to being a time for reflection and a chance to look ahead at what we can do next year, I hope that this holiday season is a time for each of you to find joy in connection with friends, family and loved ones near and far.
I wish you a safe and festive Christmas and holiday and a new year full of renewed hope and happiness.
Anthony Pizzino