Several faculty members were surprised to receive letters at their homes from Connection Point advising them of benefit packages that will expire as they approach “normal retirement age”.

The first round of letters contained references to a normal retirement age of 65; the subsequent letters changed this number to 67.

The language of “normal retirement age” was expunged from the Collective Agreement following the abolition of mandatory retirement.

Our concern about this language was raised at our Joint Benefits Committee and the term will not be used in future correspondence.

Although certain age-related changes in benefits packages remain legal, observers are beginning to question the ethics of these practices, as the arguments supporting them are in essence similar to those used to justify mandatory retirement in a previous era. The Association is monitoring developments in this area.