These are the pillars of the Canadian Retirement Income System
Canada’s Public Pension
Systems (Pillar 1)
Public Pensions:
•
Canada Pensions Plan (CPP)
•
Quebec Pension Plan (QPP)
•
Old Age Security Program (OAS)
•
Guaranteed Income Supplement Program (GIS)
Employer-Sponsored Pension
Plans (Pillar 2)
Private Pensions:
•
Registered Pension Plans
•
Retirement Savings Plan
Personal Retirement
Savings (Pillar 3):
Individual Pensions:
•
Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP)
•
Tax-Free Savings Plan (TFSA
Living well (Pillar 4)
• Health
• Family
• Sense of Purpose
The first three pillars have to do
with money and have been credited for alleviating deep poverty amongst older
Canadians, They do not act as a full replacement source of income, but they do currently
replace approximately 46% of an average Canadian’s pre-retirement earnings.
This is well below the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development average
of 63%.
Why add the fourth pillar? While some of us will spend the
majority of our retirement years in good health, others may enter retirement in
poor health or face declining health or personal circumstances that strain
their available economic resources. Those of us who want to age at home may find ourselves in positions where we have out-of-pocket costs associated with needed home modifications, home care or
transportation. Those of us who experienced
repeated financial emergencies or shocks
may be at risk of facing
even greater financial insecurity as we age.
Canadians need help in finding more public and private options that allow for financial
security through later life. As record numbers of
Canadians enter retirement over the coming
two decades, strategies and initiatives that seek to address these issues
will continue to remain important and require more attention from the
public and private systems.