The Board of Trustees of the Manitoba Home Care Employees Pension and Benefits Plans is responsible for the overall operation, administration and governance of the group pension and benefits plans. The Board of Trustees is comprised of the following individuals:
Chairperson
Teri Kindrat
Employee Trustees – nominated by the Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union
- Sheila Gordon
- Jacquie Paton
- Samantha Probetts
Employer Trustees – nominated by the Regional Health Authorities:
- Brent Kreller
- Conne Newman
- Janet Wilcox-McKay
The following are the employers (Regional Health Authorities (RHAs)) that participate in the Pension and Benefits Plans:
Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority
Northern Regional Health Authority
Prairie Mountain Health
Southern Health- Santé Sud
Winnipeg Regional Health Authority
The Manitoba Home Care Employees Benefits Plan (“Benefits Plan”) has been established as a group benefits plan for its eligible employees and eligible employees to provide assistance in paying for some of your dental and vision expenses, and replaces part of your salary if you are hurt or sick and not able to work. It also pays a benefit to your beneficiary or estate if you should die while you are eligible for benefits.
The Benefit Service Provider is Canada Life (formerly Great-West Life) and your plan numbers are:
You are employed as a Home Care Attendant, a Home Support Worker, or a Mental Health Proctor, and have work enough “eligible hours”. Eligible hours must be worked and reported over at least three consecutive months, but over no more than six consecutive months. Two hundred & forty (240) hours must be deposited into your hour bank before you are eligible of benefits.
Your coverage will begin on the first day of the second month after you have 240 eligible hours in your hour bank. Each month, the eligible hours reported for you will be deposited into your hour bank. Then, each month 80 hours will be withdrawn so that your benefits continue for the following month. You must always have a balance in your hour bank of at least 80 hours each month so that benefits can continue.
“Eligible hours” include only the paid straight time hours you work and paid vacation hours. Overtime hours, and more than eight hours a day for a live-in or an overnight shift are not included.
Your benefit coverage will stop when you fall out of benefit for more than five (5) consecutive months, you will need to accumulate 240 hours to re-establish benefit eligibility.
A life insurance benefit of $10,000 is payable to your beneficiary or estate if you die. Coverage continues until you reach age 70 as long as you remain eligible, or age 65 if you are disabled.
You and your eligible dependents have the following coverage:
- 100% of the cost of Basic Services (Exams, cleanings, x-rays, etc.)
- 50% of the cost of Major Services (Crowns, dentures, & repairs)
Maximum benefit coverage is $1,100 per person each calendar year for Basic and Major dental expenses.
- 50% of the cost of Orthodontic Services for dependent children 6 to 18 years of age.
Maximum benefit coverage is $1,100 per dependent child for Orthodontic expenses.
There is a $25 deductible/person or per family each calendar year.
Reimbursements of dental claims are based on the current year’s Manitoba Dental Fee Guide.
Your coverage is on a yearly basis in respect of the previous calendar year subject to the following:
You must have been “in benefits” for a minimum of nine (9) months in the previous calendar year.
Note: 9 months does not have to be consecutive.
Coverage is only for you and is not transferable to your spouse or dependents.
Maximum benefit coverage is $200 every other year to reimburse for vision care expenses incurred in the year immediately preceding the year in which the claim is submitted.
You must submit original vision care receipts (eye exam, glasses, contact lenses) with the claim form when submitting to Canada Life.
If you are not able to work due to sickness or an accident, you may be eligible for weekly sick leave.
Each week you get paid: 66 2/3% of your average regular earnings over the previous 26 bi-weekly pay periods, or the average of all pay periods if less than 26.
Coverage begins from the 1st calendar day for an accident or from the 3rd calendar day for sickness.
Maximum benefit coverage is 67 weeks based on a combination of Employment Insurance Sickness benefits (if applicable) and the Weekly Sick Leave Plan.
For more information on the Benefits Plan provisions, please refer to your Member Benefits Plan Booklet.
The Board of Trustees of the Manitoba Home Care Employees Pension and Benefits Plans is responsible for the overall operation, administration and governance of the group benefits plan. The Board of Trustees is comprised of the following individuals:
Chairperson
Ray Erb
Employee Trustees – nominated by the Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union
- Sheila Gordon
- Jacquie Paton
- Samantha Probetts
Employer Trustees – nominated by the Regional Health Authorities:
- Teri Kindrat
- Jason Lange
- Janet Wilcox-McKay
The following are the employers (Regional Health Authorities (RHAs)) that participate in the Pension and Benefits Plans:
Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority
Northern Regional Health Authority
Prairie Mountain Health
Southern Health- Santé Sud
Winnipeg Regional Health Authority
The Manitoba Home Care Employees Pension Plan (“Pension Plan”) has been established as a group pension plan for its eligible employees and eligible employees of participating employers to provide assistance in achieving financial security during your retirement years. A Board of Trustees is your Plan Administrator. As the Plan Administrator, the Board is responsible for the overall operations, administration and governance of the Pension Plan. The Board of Trustees is comprised of Employee Trustees who have been nominated by the Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union (MGEU) and Employer Trustees who have been nominated by the Regional Health Authorities.
The Manitoba Home Care Employees Pension Plan was established on April 1, 1989 and is a multi-employer defined contribution plan.
The Pension Plan is a Defined Contribution pension plan. The provisions are governed by both the plan documents and government pension legislation. Your benefit upon retirement is your accumulated account balance (i.e. employer plus member contributions accumulated with investment income).
All full-time employees are eligible to join the Pension Plan upon your date of hire and must join no later than the first day of the month on or after the completion of 2 years of continuous employment.
All other employees (casual or part-time) are eligible to join the Pension Plan upon your date of hire and must join no later than the first day of the month on or after the completion of 2 years of continuous employment provided you have earned at least 25% of the Year’s Maximum Pensionable Earnings (YMPE) in each of the 2 consecutive calendar years before joining the Pension Plan.
You are required to contribute 4% of your gross regular earnings (overtime, bonus, and commissions are not included). The Employer will match your required contributions.
You can transfer funds from another registered pension plan, retirement savings plan or deferred profit-sharing plan into the plan or you can contact your RHA to have voluntary contributions remitted via payroll deductions.
As an Active Plan member, you are not permitted to withdrawal required contributions. You are only permitted to withdrawal employee voluntary contributions (applicable fees may apply).
Your funds are immediately vested and locked-in.
Vesting means that you are entitled to the value of the contributions that your employer has made on your behalf and is determined by pension legislation. The term “Locked-In” means that you are entitled to a deferred pension under the Pension Plan. Locked-In funds must be used to provide a retirement income and are not generally available as cash.
At your retirement or termination of employment from your employer, you have the following options for your locked-in required pension funds:
There is no one correct choice. Your choice should reflect your unique personal financial circumstances.At your retirement or termination of employment from your employer and you have non-locked in pension funds and/or member voluntary pension funds, you have the following options for your non-locked in pension funds:
Upon your death, if you have a spouse/common-law partner and depending on their age, they would have the following options:
Upon your death, if you have no spouse/common-law partner, your beneficiary or estate would have the following options:
The investments of the Pension Plan are determined by the Board of Trustees with the assistance of their investment professionals. Once you are age 60 or over, you have the option of having your contributions invested in a more conservative investment option. Please contact the Pension Plan Administrator for more details.
For more information on the Pension Plan provisions, please refer to your Member Pension Plan Booklet.