Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Pierre Mallette, the National President of the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, a CSN affiliate. Since 1986, I have worked as a corrections officer at Donnacona Institution, a federal maximum security penitentiary in Quebec. I would first like to thank the committee members for giving us an opportunity to address the important issue of retirement.
The Union of Canadian Correctional Officers represents more than 6,000 members working in 58 institutions in eight provinces. We recognize and support Bill C-201 and its goal of substantially improving pension benefits for specific—and certainly deserving—groups, namely, Canadian Armed Forces and RCMP officers.
Both groups face risks in their professions that go far beyond what most people would normally expect to encounter in their jobs. The situation of correctional officers is in all respects identical to that of soldiers and RCMP officers. We face repeated violence and assault, and we have to use firearms and make rapid decisions that are matters of life and death. These situations have a major impact on the physical and mental health of correctional officers, and one of the possible effects is post-traumatic stress syndrome.
Improving pension income has been a concern for the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers since 2002. In our brief, you will find a summary of the numerous efforts made by the union to persuade political parties, various governments and Treasury Board of the fairness of that demand. What we are asking is that the annual pension accrual rate be raised to 2.33% from 2% per year of service. Why? Because we believe our formula is preferable. When the people concerned retire, they will be able to receive a higher income more quickly than is provided in Bill C-201.
Eliminating the age 65 reduction will provide additional money a few years after retirement, and not during the period when they need it most, before age 65. Why is this demand justified? Because we believe it is a question of fairness to the other employees in the public service.
It's because we believe it is a question of equity with other employees of the federal public service.
Those other employees work for 35 years and accumulate pension income equal to 70% of their five best years. For an employee in an occupation associated with public safety or the armed forces, the Government of Canada recognizes that the working conditions involved in their job is harmful to their health. Their pension plan therefore allows them to take retirement after 25 years' service. However, it then pays them a pension equal to 50% of their five best years.
To be fair to all its employees, the government has to change the pension plans to allow a minimum of 2.33% per year of service to be accumulated. Twenty-five years' service in corrections is equivalent to 35 years' regular service in the public service. The value of those years has to correspond to the same value in the pension plan. This is a matter of safety. The benefits currently paid by the plans are so low that very few employees retire after 25 years' service. As mentioned earlier, after 2 years' service, correctional officers' health and work are affected.
For the safety of the public and the employees, the government must not only allow them to retire after 25 years' service, it must also provide them with the resources. This is the responsibility of parliamentarians and not a mere matter of payment by Treasury Board. Treasury Board officials did not want to recommend changing the pension accrual rate for corrections officers. They compare corrections officers' annual earnings with the earnings of regular employees on an annual basis. They did not want to take into account principles such as fairness and safety.
The women and men elected to govern Canada cannot reject those principles when they analyze the problem. Not only do they have to take them into account, they must also ensure that those principles are respected. We think our demand is preferable to Bill C-201. However, if Parliament decides to pass that bill, we are asking that we be included in it because improving retirement income is crucial for our members. It is also a matter of restoring fairness in relation to the military and the RCMP.
I would like to thank you for your attention during my intervention. I am now ready to answer your questions.