The progressive retirement program allows a teacher to set up phased retirement plan of one to 5 years which involves the teacher working less and being paid less.
The annual reduction in workload must be between 40% and 80% of a full time workload.
If the teacher is over 60 (or 61, after July 2019) he or she can apply for a QPP pension which will reduce the income reduction. However, as explained here, the QPP payment will be actuarially reduced.
The end result for the teacher is similar to the voluntary work reduction leave. However, there are two differences:
- with progressive retirement the teacher must retire at the end of the agreement whereas the voluntary work reduction leave does not require a commitment to resign. If you are unsure about your desire to retire at a particular date, the voluntary work reduction leave is better.
- That with progressive retirement it is possible to maintain a full year of QPP pension service whereas this may not be possible with the voluntary work reduction leave. The QPP credits you with service on the amount you earn. If you earn less than the MPE (48,300 in 2011) this would affect your QPP pension if you do not meet the years of service requirements of the QPP mentioned above.