Even if the majority of the speakers heard in the parliamentary committee are once morest, the Minister of Finance, Eric Girard, maintains that it “might be optimal to postpone” the minimum age of eligibility for the Quebec Pension Plan (RRQ) from 60 at 62 years old.
• Read also: The FTQ warns Minister Girard once morest the reform of the QPP
• Read also: Retirement age: nothing comparable with France, assures Legault
• Read also: Should we raise the age of eligibility for the QPP?
In addition to a handful of actuaries, most of the experts who have marched before the members of the Public Finance Committee since last Wednesday testified once morest the postponement of the age at which Quebecers can begin to receive their QPP pension, with a life penalty.
At the heart of the concerns of the unions, the Conseil du patronat and the FADOQ, to name a few: the impact that such a change might have for workers whose jobs are more physically demanding, among others.
This position is also shared by the three opposition parties, even by the Liberal Party of Quebec, which at the beginning of the work, found it preferable to consult before deciding.
“Very clearly, we are closing the door, in the Liberal Party of Quebec, to a change in the age of eligibility from 60 to 62 years old. Our workers who are tired must have the option of taking their pension at this age of 60 or 61,” declared interim Liberal leader Marc Tanguay.
“We think of the cashier, we think of construction workers, plumbers who are tired and then want to retire at 60, not to take away that option when you are 60, 61,” said added Mr. Tanguay, in front of the journalists.
However, “even in these cases, it might be optimal to postpone the pension plan to 62 years”, reiterated for his part Minister Girard, during a scrum with the press.
“Just to be very precise, if we postponed, it would be for the benefit of retirees who would get 23% more money,” he added.
Currently, Quebecers who retire at the age of 60 see their QPP pension reduced by 36%. The retirement age to be entitled to 100% remains 65 years old and François Legault assured that this will not change.
The objective of the reform proposed by Retraite Québec, “is the financial health of Quebecers,” repeated the minister, who has not yet announced whether he will go ahead with the proposed changes.
The last day of consultation was also an opportunity for the Corporation des thanatologues du Québec (CTQ) to point out that the death benefit of $2,500 paid by the RRQ has not increased since 1997. It was even more generous before.
“It’s one of the few benefits that hasn’t been reviewed or indexed for so long. During this time, average funeral costs have gone from an average of $4,900 to an average of $7,500,” said CTQ President Jonathan Goyer.
“2500$, it is clearly insufficient to respect the dignity of the deceased and to support the mourning of the close relations, even less when it is a question of a deceased who contributed all his life to the Régime des Rentes du Québec”, argues the CTQ in its brief, in which an increase to $5,800 in the death benefit is claimed. This change would cost approximately $179 million, not including indexation.
“It’s a proposal that is extremely expensive,” commented Minister Girard, visibly reluctant to go ahead with this recommendation.
