Since each member's pension entitlement is unique, the first step is to contact your pension administrator to schedule a one-on-one meeting. This meeting will review your current pension details, explore potential retirement dates, and evaluate one or more pension estimates. These meetings are strictly private and confidential. Contact information is included below.
After your meeting, if you decide to retire, notify your Dean and Department Head in writing of your intent to retire and the effective date, and send a copy to your pension administrator and the Provost’s Office.
Faculty, Librarians and Ancillary Members: Your Normal Retirement Date is July 1st following your 65th birthday.
Non-Teaching Plan Members: Your Normal Retirement Date is the first of the month following your 65th birthday.
This is the date you become entitled to 100% of your monthly Minimum Guaranteed Benefit earned, with no reduction. Your NRD can be found on your annual pension statement.
The Provost’s Office will verify your eligibility for an automatic appointment per Senate Bylaw 20, 1.4.2. If eligible, you will be offered an automatic Professor Emeritus/ta appointment. This will be issued around the time of your retirement or VCT offer acceptance.
Per Senate Bylaw 20 - 1.4.2: an emeritus/ta professor or associate professor may also be appointed as graduate faculty and serve in any capacity on a graduate student's research committee.
No; one-time payment for the banked course release(s) you earned will be arranged in accordance with Article R.1 of the WUFA Collective Agreement, less union dues and statutory deductions.
Any remaining internal research funds will be available for 3 years after contract termination date. Please refer to the VPRI’s policy.
If you have unspent external research funds, please connect with the Office of Research Services and Innovation, as these funds will be subject to the rules and regulations of the external research granting agency.
During the 12-month severance period you will not be permitted to teach on sessional contract. Once the severance period has completed, you could apply for sessional courses.
If you are not already drawing from the pension plan, you and the University will continue making the required pension contributions as per the Plan provisions, with full pension accrual of earnings and service until the end of the salary continuance period. At the end of this period, you will be provided with options as to the disposition of your pension benefits. Please contact Mitali Tailor at Mitali.tailor@uwindsor.ca or ext. 4572 for more information regarding your pension
You will continue to be eligible for full Green Shield health benefits to the end of the salary continuance period.
After the VCT severance period ends, you will have the option to participate in the Faculty Retiree Green Shield Benefits Plan and the Faculty Retiree Health Care Subsidy Plan.
Please refer to the following Knowledge Based Article.
Note: Those who are still conducting research on an active research grant and/or advising graduate students, they can submit a UWin Account Services service request to inquire about extending their MS365 licensing. They should select/enter the following information to help direct/expedite their request:
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Account Type - Employee
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Request Type - Other
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Additional Details – Example: “Taken a VCT offer [or retired] as of X date. Going to be continuing to {research on active research grant} or {advise graduate students}. Inquiring about extending my MS365 licensing.
Please refer to the following Knowledge Based Article.
Yes, the plan rates are available to retirees too. Please refer to the following Knowledge Based Article.
If you no longer receive a pay cheque for whatever reason, you will be removed from the High-Speed Home Internet Access payroll deduction program. This does not mean that your service will automatically be disconnected or that you can no longer use the Internet services from the provider. You will be contacted by the service provider directly to determine if you wish to continue services and be billed directly by the service provider or discontinue the service altogether if you prefer.
After Normal Retirement Date, members of the Faculty Pension Plan are eligible at their own expense to enroll in one of the following Green Shield Health Benefits plans:
Option #1- Dental coverage only. Retirees pay 50% of the monthly premium and the University of Windsor pays the remaining 50%.
Option #2 – Full Coverage except for Drug. Includes Dental, Semiprivate Hospital, Extended Health & 90- or 180-day travel coverage.
Option #3 – Full Coverage. Includes Drug, Dental, Semiprivate Hospital, Extended Health & 90- or 180-day travel coverage.
*Vision coverage does NOT form part of any of the available benefit packages. Please refer to the benefit booklets for complete details of items and services that are covered in these plans.
Members of the Faculty Association bargaining unit at the time of their retirement who enroll in the health care portion of the University of Windsor’s Health & Dental Care Plan for Faculty Retirees and draw a pension from the University’s Retirement Plan for Faculty and Certain Employees are eligible for the University’s Health Care Premium Subsidy.
For more information about your applicable rates at the time of enrolment and the Retiree Health Cares Premium Subsidy, please connect with Mitali Tailor, Pension Administrator, ext. 4572, or by email at mtailor@uwindsor.ca.
The Windsor University Retirees Association offers many opportunities to stay connected.
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Social - maintain contacts with other retired university colleagues
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Financial and Health - protection of retirees’ interests through Windsor University Faculty Association (WUFA) membership
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Professional – take advantage of benefits the University offers only to retirees who are members of WURA
UWindsor joins Age-Friendly University Global Network
Learn more about the Age Friendly Initiative
Pension-specific questions:
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Under the Plan’s retirement provisions, pensions must be paid as either immediate or deferred monthly pension amounts. Lump sum transfers are not permitted. Should you wish to exercise a lump sum transfer of your pension, you must instead resign your employment.
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As this would be a Plan membership termination, not a Plan membership retirement, there is no ongoing Green Shield coverage, and future entitlement to the Faculty Retiree Green Shield benefits and the Faculty Retiree Health Care Subsidy is forfeited.
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Lump sum transfers are subject to Income Tax Act regulations which limit transfer of amounts on a tax deferred basis. To avoid having to take a portion in cash (subject to immediate taxation) you would need to have personal RRSP room.
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Once funds are transferred from the Plan, former members become solely responsible for the fund investments and future returns.
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If your employment ceases for any reason other than retirement or death, in lieu of a lump sum transfer, you may elect to defer the start of your pension to a future date, typically at your normal retirement date. Deferred Money Purchase Accounts are subject to future fund returns which may be positive or negative. Minimum Guarantee Benefits are subject to the early retirement provisions addressed below.
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If you are interested in the lump-sum option, your pension administrator can provide you with both an estimate of entitlement on retirement AND an estimate of entitlement upon termination.
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These are important and long-term decisions, and your pension administrator is always available to assist you with your questions or concerns. We also encourage you to seek independent financial advice prior to making any permanent decisions.
It means to cease pension accrual, leave your entitlement within the Plan, and delay the start of your monthly pension to a future date. If you choose to begin your pension between age 55 and 65, early retirement reductions to the Minimum Guarantee Benefit (MGB), as outlined below will apply. If you choose to defer the pension to your Normal Retirement Date, the reduction factor is eliminated.
Your pension depends on several factors: your age, the early retirement date you’re considering, and your years of pensionable service, contributions and fund returns. The MPB pension value is converted at time of retirement and is subject to fund gains and losses if the pension is deferred into the future. The MGB pension value is based on your service from the date you joined the Plan to your retirement date and remains fixed.
If you retire early but delay starting your pension until the normal retirement date, you’ll receive the full value of your MGB. However, if you start the pension earlier, the monthly amount is adjusted to account for the earlier start and the longer payment period. Members planning to start a second career, take on a new job, or draw from RRSP savings often defer starting their pension if it’s not immediately needed. This helps reduce taxable income and lowers the early retirement reduction percentage.
You can retire from the University as early as 10 years before your Normal Retirement Date. If you decide to retire early and immediately begin your pension:
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For the Money Purchase Benefit (MPB), the entitlement is straightforward. The balance of your Money Purchase Component (MPC) account is converted to a monthly pension using an annuity factor, just as it would be at normal retirement.
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For the Minimum Guarantee Benefit (MGB), the early retirement formula is like the normal retirement formula except that the amount is multiplied by an actuarial reduction factor, to account for the fact that since the pension starts earlier, it will most likely be payable longer. Typically, the reduction is approximately 7% per year (0.5833% per month).
Minimum Guaranteed Benefit (MGB) Early Retirement Reduction Scenario
(using an estimated actuarial reduction % of 7% and assuming immediate pension commencement)
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Retire age 55 Reduction 7% x 10 years = 70% reduction
MGB Pension is permanently reduced to 30%
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Retire age 58 Reduction 7% x 7 years = 49% reduction
MGB Pension is permanently reduced to 51%
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Retire age 60 Reduction 7% x 5 years = 35% reduction
MGB Pension is permanently reduced to 65%
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Retire age 63 Reduction 7% x 2 years = 14% reduction
MGB Pension is permanently reduced to 86%
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Retire age 65 NO Reduction
MGB Pension is unreduced at 100% earned to date
Active members of the Faculty Plan who elect to:
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Retire under the Plan’s Early Retirement provisions (age 55 to age 65) AND begin either an immediate or deferred monthly pension:
Active GS benefits cease until Normal Retirement Date. You’ll need a plan to manage secondary health coverage during this period. You might consider relying on spousal insurance or personal savings. Many insurers, including GS, offer replacement coverage options after employment ends. Further information can be found here: https://www.greenshield.ca/en-ca/insurance/individual
At Normal Retirement Date you become entitled to receive the Faculty Retiree Dental benefit, with 50% of the dental premium paid by the University. You are also eligible to participate in the premium paid portion of the GS benefit package for Faculty Retirees. Additionally, at Normal Retirement Date you are eligible for the Faculty Retiree Health Care Subsidy.
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Retire at or beyond your Normal Retirement Date (age 65 onward) AND begin an immediate monthly pension, you become entitled to receive the Faculty Retiree Dental benefit, with 50% of the dental premium paid by the University. You are also eligible to participate in the premium paid portion of the GS benefit package for Faculty Retirees. Additionally, you are eligible for the Faculty Retiree Health Care Subsidy.
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Additional information is available on the Human Resources website.
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We are here to help you! Email us at pensions@uwindsor.ca
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Contact your pension administrator – Mitali Tailor at Mitali.Tailor@uwindsor.ca
Attend one of our pension workshops held each year. Review past workshops