Proposed Expansion of the Operational Service Early Retirement Program
The following proposals are subject to approval by Parliament as part of the Budget 2025 and associated legislation. Please bookmark this page for future updates.
Government Commitment
The Government of Canada has reaffirmed its intention to expand the operational service early retirement program to include frontline employees from additional occupational groups. This expansion requires legislative and regulatory amendments.
Program Details
The operational service program enables eligible plan members to retire early with an immediate unreduced pension after completing 25 years of actual operational service. Alternatively, members can retire at age 50 if they have at least 10 years of actual and 10 years of “deemed” operational service.
Like all public service pension plan members, participants accrue pensionable service at about 2% per year, meaning retiring after 25 years results in roughly a 50% pension benefit.
Occupational Groups Affected
This expansion will apply to frontline federal workers in the following groups, acknowledging the demanding nature of their daily work to protect Canadians:
- Border Services Officers
- Parliamentary Protection Officers
- Search and Rescue Personnel
- Federal and Territorial Firefighters
- Paramedics
- Correctional Employees
The operational service early retirement program allows eligible plan members to retire earlier with an immediate unreduced pension after completing 25 years of actual operational service.
These changes highlight the government's recognition of the challenging and vital roles these employees fulfill.
Author's Summary
The Government of Canada proposes expanding early retirement benefits to more frontline workers, reflecting their critical service and physical demands.