Question Period Note: MY65+ INITIATIVE

What is the status of the of the Budget 2021 announcement to provide incentives for personal support workers with the funding of the my65+ initiative?

• The Government is working to implement this initiative announced in Budget 2021 to support incentives for personal support workers involved in seniors care to save for their retirement.
• The structure of the program is currently being finalized. Following this, an agreement with my65+ (the Group Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) of the Service Employees International (SEIU) Healthcare) will be negotiated.
• My colleague Minister Qualtrough is leading on this initiative.

My65+ is a Group Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) that was launched in 2015 to act as a pension vehicle for Service Employees International (SEIU) Healthcare, an Ontario union representing 60,000 frontline healthcare workers, to provide individuals with a stable, secure means to save for retirement, with risk pooling and lower management fees.

The 2020 Fall Economic Statement announced that, to support personal support workers, homecare workers and essential workers involved in senior care, the government would work with labour and healthcare unions, among others, to seek solutions to improve retention, recruitment, and retirement savings options for low and modest-income workers, particularly those without existing workplace pension coverage.

Budget 2021 proposed to provide funding of $27.6 million over three years for my65+ to support incentives for worker participation.

SEIU-Healthcare will work with other unions and employers across the country to make this portable savings tool available to other workers in the elder care sector.

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