Gay Lea Foods Co-Operative Limited, Counsel: Andrew Lokan, Palaire Roland Rosenberg Rothstein LLP

Cochrane Farmers Co-Operative; Green Lea AG Centre Inc.; Huron Bay Co-Operative Inc.; Inland Co-Operative Inc.; Lucknow District Co-Operative Inc.; Madoc Co-Operative Association; Manitoulin Livestock Co-Operative; North Wellington Co-Operative Services Inc.; Ontario Federation of Agriculture; Orford Co-Operative Ltd.; Simcoe District Co-Operative Services; Sunderland Co-Operative Inc.; Waterloo-Oxford Co-Operative Inc.; Co-opérative Régionale de Nipissing-Sudbury Limited, Counsel: Peggy McCallum, Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP

Warkworth Co-Operative Services;

Board of Trustees of the Participating Co-Operatives of Ontario Trusteed Pension Plan, Counsel: Paul Morrison, McCarthy Tétrault LLP

Thomas Perkes; Jon Lazarus; Donald Kabbes, Donald Huff, Bruce Chambers, Reg Cressman, Counsel: Michael Mazzuca, Koskie Minsky

Glencoe Country Depot, Representative: Darin Kulich

10/30/2006 (Pre-Hearing Conference) adjourned; 02/26/2007 (Pre-Hearing Conference by teleconference); 06/22/2007 (Pre-Hearing Conference by teleconference); 09/26/2007 (Pre-Hearing Conference by teleconference); 11/28/2007 (Pre-Hearing Conference by teleconference);
01/09/2008 (Pre-Hearing Conference by teleconference) rescheduled to 01/11/2008; 01/28/2008 (Pre-Hearing Conference); 03/17/2008 (Pre-Hearing Conference); 03/31/2008 (Hearing)

On May 9, 2006, Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Limited, requested a hearing regarding the Notice of Proposal of the Deputy Superintendent, Pensions, dated April 12, 2006, proposing to:

• refuse, pursuant to section 18(1)(d) of the Pension Benefits Act (the “Act”), to register an amendment dated February 27, 2004 and effective March 31, 2003 (the “Amendment”) to the Participating Co-operatives of Ontario Trusteed Revised Pension Plan, Registration Number 0345736 (the “Plan”) that terminates the Plan effective March 31, 2003 and reduces benefits accumulated prior to that date.

• order that the Board of Trustees of the Plan (the “Trustees”) refrain from administering the Plan in accordance with the Amendment to the extent that the Amendment reduces benefits accumulated prior to March 31, 2003;

• order, pursuant to ss.75 and 87 of the Act, that the employers participating in the Plan (the “Employers”) pay, in the prescribed manner and at the prescribed times, into the fund for the Plan (the “Fund”), such amounts so that the total of the amounts contributed by all Employers on a joint and several basis equals the sum of:

1. the total of all payments that under the Act, the Regulations and under the Act and the Plan are due or that have accrued and that have not been paid into the Fund; and
   
2. the amount by which:
   1. the value of the pension benefits accrued and vested under the Plan, and
   2. the value of benefits accrued resulting from the application of ss. 39(3) and 74 of the Act, exceed the value of the assets of the Fund;

• order, pursuant to s. 87 of the Act, that consequent upon a finding that the Employers are required to contribute to the Plan under s. 75 of the Act, the Trustees refrain from reducing pension payments to retired members (or their surviving spouses, if applicable)  due on and after April 1, 2003 and refrain from reducing pension payments to new retired members due on and after April 1, 2003 and that such reductions implemented thus far be reversed by refunding the difference between the full benefit entitlement under the Plan and the reduced amounts actually paid with interest;
  
• refuse, pursuant to s. 70(5) of the Act, to approve a wind up report filed by the Trustees and dated February 28, 2004 with respect to a full wind up of the Plan effective March 31, 2003; and

• order, pursuant to s. 88 of the Act, that the Trustees prepare and file a new wind up report that among other things, addresses the defects set out in the Notice of Proposal and, specifically, contains:

1. a statement of benefits to be provided under the Plan to members, former members and other persons without regard to the reductions contemplated in the Amendment and notice of wind up of the Plan dated April 1, 2003 (the “Notice”);
2. a distribution scheme for the assets of the Plan without regard to the benefit reductions set out in the Amendment and Notice; and
3. provision for the fact that the Employers are required to make additional contributions under the Act.

The Superintendent has taken the position that:

• the Plan text prohibits amendments to the Plan that reduce benefits accumulated prior to the date of the amendment;
• no payments are being made, or are anticipated to be made, into the Fund by any of the Employers to reduce or eliminate the unfunded liability of the Plan as at March 31, 2003, although s. 75 of the Act requires employers participating in a pension plan that is to be wound up to pay into the plan amounts that are due or have accrued but are unpaid and amounts by which the liabilities under the plan exceed the assets in the plan.
• the Notice provides for reductions in payments for retired members (in addition to the reductions set out in the Amendment) which are not permitted by the Act or the Regulations thereunder.

On May 11, 2006, requests for hearing were also filed by:

• the Board of Trustees of Participating Co-operatives of Ontario Trusteed Pension Plan,
• Cochrane Farmers Co-operative,
• Green Lea AG Center Inc.
• Huron Bay Co-operative Inc.
• Inland Co-operative Inc.
• Lucknow District Co-operative Inc.
• Madoc Co-operative Association
• Manitoulin Livestock Co-operative
• North Wellington Co-operative Services Inc.
• Ontario Federation of Agriculture
• Orford Co-operative Ltd.
• Simcoe District Co-operative Services
• Sunderland Co-operative Inc.
• Warkworth Co-operative Services, and
• Waterloo-Oxford Co-operative Inc.

On May 31, 2006, applications for party status were filed by Thomas Perks a member of the Plan, and Jon Lazarus a former member of the Plan.