On pushback

It shouldn't come as much surprise that the Cons are looking to get away with doing as little as they can what it comes to pensions (other than finding ways to slash them). But it's good to see that the lack of action isn't coming without some significant criticism:

"What we're asking for is a kind of big nation-building moment," said Payne, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour. She was referring to the labour movement's call for an overhaul of the Canada Pension Plan that would increase workers' and employers' contributions and eventually double CPP benefits.

"The recession highlighted and exposed huge cracks in our retirement system," she said. "But we're dealing with a government that would be philosophically opposed to trying to do anything in this kind of a collective way."
...
Susan Eng, vice-president of advocacy for the Canadian Association of Retired Persons, says the Conservatives appear to be stalling.

On the throne speech, Eng said her group "wanted the government to focus on retirement security and pension reform issues, but got Seniors' Day instead."

Of the latest pension consultations, she said, "They're trying to ask the same questions over and over again, hoping to get a different answer, to see if somebody will tell them, `No, we're fine, don't do any more.'"