OTF Concerns: Pensions and Standardized Testing (OTF Report)

The Current Economic Crisis has  been likened to the Great Depression and has created pressures that most Ontarians have not experienced before. Unfortunately, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (OTPP) has not been immune to this global economic disaster. In its April report to members, the OTPP Board revealed that the plan’s net assets had dropped to $87.4 billion in 2008, from $108.5 billion a year  earlier. This is the third time in the plan’s 18-year history that it has registered a loss and the first time in nine years that it has underperformed its total fund benchmark.

By law the plan must file a valuation with the provincial regulators every three years. To be considered fully funded, the plan must have sufficient assets to pay pensions to all current and retired members over a 70-year span. Low interest rates, the declining ratio of active members to retired members, and the longevity of retirees affect the cost of pensions. Both the 2005 and the 2008 valuations showed a funding shortfall. To balance the fund the partners – OTF and the government – had the option of increasing contributions, reducing benefits, or using a combination of the two. To eliminate the 2005 shortfall the partners agreed to a contribution increase of 3.1 percent, phased in over three years. To deal with the 2008 shortfall a provision for conditional indexing for service after 2009 was implemented. The partners and the OTPP Board continue to discuss what is the best time to file the next valuation. The assumptions used by the board for the valuation of our pension remain a source of concern.

However,  members  should  rest  assured their pensions are secure. Significant portions of the reported losses were unrealized (paper losses). The  plan’s  exceptionally  diverse  assets position it well to ride out the recession and to provide strong returns once the economy returns to normal.

Increased requests for assistance
The global recession also had a significant impact on OTF's international assistance program. In 40 years the federation has never experienced such a deluge of requests for assistance as it received this year. OTF dedicates approximately 1.8 percent of net revenue to international assistance. This year it was able to partially fund 141 projects, many submitted by organizations located in India.

EQAO  test  results  misused?
The   provincial   government’s   proclivity   for large-scale, standards-based testing continues to be a source of consternation. OTF has advocated for random sample testing as a means to supply the data necessary to guide educational policy decisions, engender public confidence, provide   additional   resources   for   specialty teachers,and eliminate the nefarious practice of ranking schools. OTF was dismayed to learn about the School Information  Finder,  a  Ministry  of  Education website that enables a comparison of schools based on EQAO scores, student population, and socio-economic factors. In essence, the website allows parents to shop for schools. It does noth- ing to strengthen the fabric of equity in Ontario’s multculturally diverse society. Conversely, it could demoralize neighbourhoods, polarize communities, and foster a culture of elitism. At the time of writing, OTF, its affiliated teacher federations, and various stakeholders were ad- dressing this issue with the ministry.

This is my last Voice article as ETFO’s OTF table officer. It has been my pleasure to represent you at OTF.