Personal Support Worker Retirement Savings Innovation Program-Solicited Call

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• Application period Closed
• Description
• Objective
• Organization solicited for funding
• Eligibility
• Contact us

Application period

• We expect that the project will begin in February 2025.

Description

The Personal Support Worker Retirement Savings Innovation Program provides contribution funding to pilot projects. The projects will develop and test innovative solutions to strengthen retirement savings of PSWs without workplace retirement security coverage. Projects funded will need to:

• make use of a tax-assisted private savings vehicle
• contain an element that wholly or partially matches funds invested for retirement by participating PSWs, and
• agree to provide data to allow for the assessment of the program

Through this process, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) will fund an "initial recipient" that will redistribute the contributions to the "ultimate recipients", the PSWs, as retirement savings incentives.

Additionally:

• the incentives:
  • must contain at least 1 element that wholly or partially matches funds invested in tax-assisted private savings vehicles by ultimate recipients. The matching component could be a fixed amount of incentive per dollar saved or vary depending on the specific circumstances of each ultimate recipients based on factors such as:
    • length of participation in the pilot
    • amounts saved; or
    • hours worked, etc.
  • could include elements that reward behaviors conducive to saving towards retirement but are not necessarily based on actual amounts saved. This includes opening a tax-assisted private savings vehicles or transferring an existing one to participate in the pilot project
  • must be deposited into the tax-assisted private savings vehicle that led to, or is associated with, the earning of those incentives
  • cannot exceed $5,000 per individual per calendar year; and
  • can only be used for savings and other eligible activities for the ultimate recipients during the 24-month period of the pilot projects

Eligible initial recipient can apply for a minimum for $1,000,000 and a maximum of $30,000,000. The annual maximum funding per year is as follows:

• 2024 - 2025: To Be Confirmed
• 2025 - 2026: $7 million
• 2026 - 2027: $10 million
• 2027 - 2028: $13 million
  • not-for-profit organization can use a maximum of 15% of contribution fund to pay administrative cost
  • for-profit organization can use a maximum of 8% of contribution fund to pay administrative cost

The pilot project must operate for 24 months starting as early as February 2025.

Objective

The program seeks to help the government test different approaches to incent private savings for retirement by PSWs and assess parameters that work best. It would also increase the financial security of participating PSWs towards their retirement and contribute to their retention in the long-term care sector.

Organization solicited for funding

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) is inviting to apply my65+, which is a not-for-profit organization that manages a Group Tax-Free Savings Account created by the Service Employees International Union Healthcare to provide a retirement savings to their members and for which funding was announced in Budget 2021. They will not necessarily receive funding but must send a proposal for consideration.

Find information on funded grants and contribution projects in proactive disclosure.

Eligibility

This solicited process is open to invited organization only.

Contact us

If you have questions, please email us at edsc.pssp-psw.esdc@hrsdc-rhdcc.gc.ca.