OTTAWA, ON: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) released new data today just in time for Labour Day showing the large gap between government workers’ pension benefits and everyone else. The CTF again called on governments to freeze and convert their unsustainable defined-benefit pension plans to less costly, defined contribution plans.
Nation-wide, Statistics Canada data shows that 87.1% of government employees have workplace pensions, up from 75.5% in 1977. Outside of government, just 24.4% of workers have workplace pension plans, down from 35.2% in 1977.
Workplace Pensions – Who Has Them? (2010)
| Government Employees | Everyone Else | |
| Defined Benefit | 81.9% | 12.7% |
| Defined Contribution | 4.2% | 6.8% |
| Other | 1.0% | 4.8% |
| No Pension Plan | 12.9% | 75.7% |
Source: Statistics Canada (CTF custom order of most recent data.) Totals may not add up to 100% due to rounding
“Not only are government employees more likely to have workplace pensions, they typically have the ‘golden’ type – defined benefit plans,” said CTF Federal Director Gregory Thomas. “Considering most defined-benefit pension plans in the country are running a deficit, it’s time for the government to follow the private sector and get out of them.”
The average government employee saw $8,734 go into their pension plan last year while everyone else saw an average of just $4,092 go into their pension plan or RRSP.
Which Plans Received the Most Contributions in 2011
| Total Deposits by Employer & Employees* | Number of Employees in Canada | Per Employee Contribution | |
| Government Employees | $31.3 Billion | 3,587,800 | $8,734.18 |
| Private Sector Employees | $56.2 Billion | 13,740,800 | $4,091.74 |
* Note: Deposits for the private sector include total nation-wide RRSP contributions (estimated $33.3 billion based on average of last five years) Source: Statistics Canada
“Government employees have twice as much money going into their pensions than people in the private sector, and yet, there are still massive shortfalls in their pension plans. What’s worse is that those in the private sector, who have a fraction of the pension savings, are being forced by their governments to backstop these rich government pension plans,” continued Thomas. “After scaling back their own plans, politicians across the country need to begin the work of fixing government workers’ plans.”
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