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2024 end of year
message from UPP
In this issue...
Letter from Barb Zvan
UPP President and CEO
As we close out another year, I want to take a moment to reflect on the progress we’ve made together and share some thoughts on what lies ahead. After only three years, we have made steady strides on our journey to build a full-service defined benefit pension plan, including in-house investment and member services capabilities.
This year has again been one of growth and major milestones for UPP, and I am very proud of the steps taken to continue strengthening the security and stability of your retirement future.
That said, as with any year, there have also been challenges. We know that the university sector continues to face financial pressures, which has caused uncertainty for many of our members. As your pension plan, and the pension plan for the sector, we aim to provide you with dependable and secure pension income–the retirement peace of mind you can rely on for your future.
Through careful planning, prudent investment strategies, and ongoing collaboration with our partners, we are committed to keeping your pension plan on a steady course, now and in the years to come.
Launching our new member services experience
Earlier this year, we launched a new service experience, including the myUPP Member Portal–a significant milestone in our journey to provide you with a modern and secure service experience. This means that whenever you have a question about your pension, need support in making a decision, or want to update your personal information, you have direct access to our team of experts. Since launch in August, our Member Service team has fielded over 10,000 calls and secure messages from members.
In the coming months, we’ll be rolling out even more features we know are important to you and your retirement planning, such as the Pension Estimate Calculator, which will help you project your future pension based on different scenarios, like changes in your earnings or retirement dates.
Growing the Plan
This year, we welcomed two new participating employers to the plan—the Association of Professors of the University of Ottawa (APUO) and the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA). UPP is now proudly the pension provider to over 40,000 members from Ontario’s university sector and growing. We continue to have active discussions with those interested in learning more about UPP and look forward to welcoming more members in 2025!
Investing for the future
In 2024, we continued to implement our total fund investment strategy, which focuses on maintaining a strong funded status and meeting members’ pension needs for decades to come. We made several notable new investments, crossing over the $1 billion threshold in privately negotiated investment opportunities. These investments include Angel Trains, our first direct single asset investment, and Rowan Digital Infrastructure, a renewable energy-powered data centre developer, which not only provide important inflation-hedging properties to our investment portfolio and enhanced diversification to improve investment outcomes, but also help us make meaningful progress against our Climate Solutions Investment Target, which we announced last year as part of the Climate Transition Investment Framework.
Protecting your pension against inflation
When you retire and begin receiving your pension, the portion accrued under UPP is subject to conditional funded indexation. This important plan feature means that the amount of your monthly pension in pay may increase through a cost-of-living adjustment based on the increase in the Canadian Consumer Price Index (CPI). UPP’s target funded conditional indexation is 75% of the increase in CPI for Canada but may be less based on the Plan’s overall financial health and Funding Policy.
In 2025, UPP is pleased to provide indexation at the target level of 75% of the increase in the Canadian CPI. This means retired members, survivors and dependents in pay will receive an increase to their pensions accrued under UPP provisions of 2.03% effective January 1, 2025.
In closing, I would like to offer a message directly to our members, and that is one of gratitude. We at UPP deeply appreciate your ongoing trust and support. It is a privilege to manage and deliver this pension plan on your behalf. Thank you for being a valued part of UPP. Together, we will continue to move forward with purpose, resilience, and a shared commitment to your future and financial well-being.
Sincerely,
Barbara Zvan
President and CEO, UPP
2024 updates
- © 2025 University Pension Plan