Higgs government wins final approval for public-sector pension bill

The Higgs government has won final approval for legislation that will force five public-sector employee groups into a shared-risk pension system, a setback for the Canadian Union of Public Employees but a major win for Premier Blaine Higgs.

MLAs voted 28-19 for the bill Tuesday afternoon during the third and final reading of the legislation.

Union members in the public gallery jeered during the votes, all but drowning out the sound of the legislature clerk calling the names of MLAs as they voted. 

The bill will become law Wednesday – the final sitting day before Christmas – when Lt.-Gov. Brenda Murphy arrives at the legislature to grant royal asset to it and other pieces of legislation passed this fall. 

CUPE regional director Sandy Harding told reporters that once the bill is in effect, the union leadership will look at legal options, including a court challenge or labour grievances against what CUPE considers an illegal move by the province.

"We're going to go back and regroup tonight," she said. "We have meetings all day tomorrow to see. This is the beginning, not the end."

Earlier in the day, Higgs defended the legislation as necessary to fix a shortfall in the pension fund for the affected union locals — while having little impact on their benefits. 

"When people realize, 'I'm on pension, what's it mean to me?' Nothing. 'I've got 25 years in, what's it mean to me?' Minor changes, Mr. Speaker, minor changes in contribution, minor changes in what it might take for retirement time," he said earlier during question period.

"The point is, we have an unfunded liability of $265 million. It needs to be fixed."

As New Brunswick's finance minister in 2014, Higgs set up the shared-risk system and persuaded or forced several public-sector employee groups to join it, including some CUPE locals.

But two CUPE bargaining units representing school custodians, maintenance workers, bus drivers and administrative staff continued to resist as recently as 2021, when Higgs, now premier, tried to shift them into the system during contract negotiations to end a strike.

They signed a side agreement on pensions with the province in 2021 at the end of a 16-day strike, setting up a separate process to resolve the issue.

Late last month Higgs accused the union of dragging its feet on that and introduced the Pension Plan Sustainability and Transfer Act.

It will force the two CUPE locals and three groups in the New Brunswick Council of Nursing Home Unions into a process to determine the future of their pension plans.