Bill 3 amendments to delay pension plan restructuring proposed

Municipal Affairs Minister Pierre Moreau has introduced amendments to soften Bill 3, the municipal pension reform legislation that has invoked the ire of municipal employees across Quebec since it was tabled last spring.

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"I think the amendments tabled this morning respond to all the reasonable requests we received," Moreau said Thursday morning at the National Assembly.

Moreau said the government will now honour existing collective agreements when it comes to pension contributions.

He also said that pension funds that are healthy and performing well will still be restructured.  However, fund managers will have until Jan. 1, 2016 to do that, which is when the current collective agreement expires.

Meanwhile, other funds that are not capitalized at a high value will be restructured immediately. 

Moreau said the principle behind the bill still stands – to bring employer and employee contributions to a 50/50 split – and will be part of any agreements negotiated in the future.