CANADIAN LABOUR-MANITOBA:

MANITOBA PENSION FORUMS:

Molly has blogged frequently on the matter of pensions and their protection in Canada. Next month the Manitoba Federation of Labour (MFL) will be holding public forums in Winnipeg and Brandon on this subject. Here's their announcement.

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Pension Forums in Winnipeg and Brandon:
CLC organized forums are open to everyone.
After a lifetime of work, everyone should be able to look forward to retirement security. But with the global economy suffering its deepest downturn since the 1930s, many Canadians are fearful that they may retire without adequate pensions or even fall into poverty. Canada's 'fend for yourself' approach to pensions has created a patchwork system that is failing Canadians.

Did you know eight million Canadian workers have no pension or RRSP savings? And even workers with enrolled in a workplace pension plan can't be confident their pension money will be there when they need it. Unfair bankruptcy rules and unscrupulous employers have cost thousands of workers their jobs and their pensions.

Pensions are some help, but their benefits fall short of needs. The low benefits afforded by OAS/GIS makes seniors vulnerable, especially single women, First Nations, and seniors with disabilities. Seniors deserve better. It is unfair to ask those who built this country to live meagre lives in retirement.

Public forums being held by the Canadian Labour Congress during February in Winnipeg and Brandon will give you an opportunity to learn more about pensions and give you a better understanding of why the retirement savings of countless workers have been put at risk. Discussions at the forums will include what can be done to create a pension system where no one is left behind.

Everyone is welcome to attend these forums so that together, we can move forward towards retirement security for all workers and their families. The Winnipeg Forum is at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, February 22, in Room 2C of the Union Centre, 275 Broadway. The Brandon forum is on Tuesday, February 23, at 5:30 p.m. in the UFCW Training Centre, 530 Richmond Avenue East.

Forum admission is free and members of the general public are welcome. For more information about these forums, you can phone Deborah Jamerson in Winnipeg at 947-9494, or email her at djamerson@clc-ctc.ca.