Section
I - Definitions
The
following words and phrases as used herein have the following meanings, unless a
different meaning is plainly required by the context:
1.
"Actuary" means a person or firm
retained by the Company who is, or one of whose employees is, a Fellow of the
Canadian Institute of Actuaries.
2.
"Actuarial Equivalent" means a
pension of an actuarially equivalent value computed using actuarial tables and
such other methods and assumptions as may be adopted by the Company on the
recommendation of the Actuary for the purposes of the Plan, subject to any
requirements of the Pension Benefits
Act.
3.
"Commuted Value" means, in relation
to benefits that a person has a present or future entitlement to receive, a lump
sum amount which is the actuarial present value of those benefits computed at
the rate of interest and using the actuarial tables adopted by the Company on
the recommendation of the Actuary, subject to the requirements of the Pension Benefits Act and the Income Tax Act.
4.
"Company", for the period prior to
5.
"Continuous Service" means the period
of complete calendar months (expressed as twelfths of a year) of service with
the Company, calculated from the later of the date of employment or the date of
re-employment including any period of lay-off and any period of temporary
suspension of Employment.
6.
"Credited Service" means the period
of complete calendar months (expressed as twelfths of a year) of service with
the Company, calculated from the later of the date of employment or the date of
re-employment or commencement of work following the last break in service, if
any, and shall include any period during which the Employee was absent from work
at a time prescribed by the Company on a vacation to which he was entitled and
any period not exceeding twelve (12) consecutive calendar months during the
whole of which the Employee was absent from work by reason of Total Disability
not compensable under the Worker's
Compensation Act or similar law in any province and any period of maternity
or parental leave to the extent required under the Employment Standards Act or similar law
in any province not exceeding, in respect of periods of maternity or parental
leave on and after January 1, 1991, in the aggregate, five (5) years of
full-time equivalent employment plus an additional three (3) years of full-time
equivalent employment in respect of maternity or parental leaves which are
within the 12 month period which commences at the time of the birth or adoption
of a child. Credited Service shall
not include any calendar month during the whole of which the Employee was absent
from work for any other reason.
Service with any predecessor company designated by the Company shall be
included as well as service with the Company.
Service shall be broken and no service prior to such break shall be
credited (whether prior or subsequent to the Effective Date)
by:
(a)
resignation
or other voluntary termination of employment,
(b)
lay-off
for lack of work,
(c)
discharge
or other termination of employment by the Company,
(d)
absence due to a Total Disability as follows:
(i)
in the case of any such absence which began prior to August 1, 1990
for the applicable period in accordance with the appropriate provision of the
Prior Plan in effect at the beginning of such absence; or
(ii) in
the case of any such absence which began on or after
(A)
more than twenty-four (24) months in the case of an Employee with less
than two (2) years Credited Service at the beginning of such
absence;
(B)
more than thirty (30) months in the case of an Employee with two (2)
years but less than three (3) years Credited Service at the beginning of such
absence;
(C)
more than thirty-six (36) months in the case of an Employee with three
(3) years but less than four (4) years Credited Service at the beginning of such
absence;
(D)
more than forty-two (42) months in the case of an Employee with four (4)
years but less than five (5) years Credited Service at the beginning of such
absence; and
(E)
more than forty-eight (48) months in the case of an Employee with five
(5) or more years of Credited Service at the beginning of such absence;
or
(iii)
in the case of any such absence which began on or after August 1, 1972
due to a Total Disability compensable under the Worker's Compensation Act or similar law
in any province, for more than sixty (60) months in the case of an Employee with
ten (10) or more years of Credited Service at the beginning of such absence;
or
(iv)
in the case of any such absence which began on or after January 2, 1990
due to a Total Disability compensable under the Worker's Compensation Act or similar law
in any province, for more than twelve (12) months in the case of an Employee
with less than ten (10) years of Credited Service at the beginning of such
absence;
provided that in the cases referred to in items (ii), (iii) and (iv) of
this paragraph (d) absence in excess of such periods due to a temporary Total
Disability compensable under the Worker's
Compensation Act or similar law in any province shall not be deemed to have
caused a break in service if the Employee returns to work within thirty (30)
days after termination of weekly compensation payments in respect of such
disability. In the case of an
absence due to such compensable disability, an Employee who reports to work
within thirty (30) days as above provided or, if the Employee shall become
eligible for Weekly Indemnity Benefits under the employer's Group Insurance
Program within such thirty (30) days, he shall be given service credit for such
compensable absence.
(e)
Failure to return to work at the termination of a leave of absence or
extension thereof sanctioned in writing by the Company;
(f) Being
absent for more than the number of days specified in the Basic Agreement without
notifying the Company, or without a justifiable excuse.
Notwithstanding the above, the Credited Service of an Employee
immediately before a break in service shall be included in Credited Service if
service was broken by lay-off for lack of work:
(aa)
commencing on or after
(i)
having less than two (2) years of Credited Service at the time of
lay-off, is rehired within twenty-four (24) months;
(ii)
having two (2) years but less than three (3) years of Credited Service at
the time of lay-off, is rehired within thirty (30) months;
(iii)
having three (3) years but less than four (4) years of Credited Service
at the time of lay-off, is rehired within thirty-six (36)
months;
(iv)
having four (4) years but less than five (5) years of Credited Service at
the time of lay-off, is rehired within forty-two (42)
months;
(v)
having five (5) or more years of Credited Service at the time of lay-off,
is rehired within forty-eight (48) months;
or
(bb)
commencing prior to August 1, 1990 and the Employee was rehired within
the applicable period in accordance with the appropriate provision of the Plan
in effect at the time of such rehiring; provided, in all cases, that the
Employee complied with the Company's requirements regarding
recall.
Credited Service for an Employee who is employed on a less than full-time
basis in accordance with paragraph 8. of Section 1 will be determined for each
Plan Year by multiplying the period of complete calendar months (expressed as
twelfths of a year) of service determined as otherwise specified under this
paragraph 6., by the ratio of such Employee's actual hours worked during the
Plan Year to the hours regularly scheduled to be worked by full-time
Employees.
7.
"Effective Date" means
8.
"Employee" means any person who is
regularly employed by the Company and who is represented by a
(a)
has
earned at least thirty-five (35) percent of the YMPE; or
(b)
has 700 hours of employment with the Company,
in each of two (2) consecutive calendar years immediately prior to
membership in the pension plan.
It is understood that, for the period prior to
9.
"Income Tax Act" means the Income Tax Act, Statutes of Canada and
the Regulations thereunder, and where applicable includes the provisions of
Information Circular 72-13R8 issued by the Department of National Revenue, as
amended or replaced from time to time.
10. "Normal Retirement Date" means the
last day of the calendar month in which the Employee attains the age of
sixty-five (65) years.
11. "Pension Benefits Act" means the Pension Benefits Act, R.S.O. 1990 of
12. "Pensioner" means an Employee who has
retired and is entitled to receive a pension under this
Plan.
13.
"Plan" means this Stelco Inc.
Bargaining Unit Pension Plan for Lake Erie Steel Company Members of United
Steelworkers of America as amended or modified from time to time.
14. "Plan
Year" means, initially, the period from
15. "Pension Plan Agreement" means the
agreement between the Company and Local 8782 of United Steelworkers of America,
with respect to this Plan and any similar agreement with another Union Local or
16.
"Spouse" means, at the time a
determination of marital status is required:
(a) a
person of the opposite sex to whom the Employee is legally married, provided the
Employee is not living separate and apart from that person,
or
(b) a
person of the opposite sex or of the same sex to whom the Employee is not
legally married but the Employee and that person have lived together in a
conjugal relationship,
(i)
continuously for a period of at least three (3) years,
or
(ii) in a
relationship of some permanence, if they are the natural or adoptive parents of
a child, both as defined in the Family
Law Act of Ontario.
17. "Total Disability" means a disability
throughout which the Employee is physically or mentally impaired so that he is
prevented from performing the duties of employment in which he was engaged prior
to the impairment and which is certified, in writing, by a medical doctor
licensed in
18. "YMPE" means, in respect of any Plan
Year, the Year's Maximum Pensionable Earnings as defined under the Canada
Pension Plan.
19.
“Basic Rate” means the amount which
is set forth below, which amount shall depend upon the date upon which the
Employee retires:
Amount
Retirement Date
$32.00
On or before
$37.00
On and after
$39.00
On and after
$41.00
On and after
$43.00
On and after
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Basic Rate for Pensioners who retired
between
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Basic Rate for Pensioners who retired
between
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Basic Rate for Pensioners who retired
between
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Basic Rate for Pensioners who retired
between
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Basic Rate for Pensioners who retired
between
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the BasicRate for Pensioners who retired
between
20. "Ironmaking Basic Rate" means the
amount which is obtained when the Basic Rate is multiplied by
0.2.
21. "Ironmaking Service" means such
portion of an Employee's period of Continuous Service during which he was
permanently assigned to the Ironmaking Division of Hilton
Works.