Fonds de solidarité FTQ Offers New Retirement Planning Workshop for the First Time to Abitibi-Témiscamingue Workers

Val-d'Or, May 17, 2023

This past winter, employees from several branches of Val-d'Or-based Groupe Poirier were the first in Abitibi-Témiscamingue to participate in a new initiative of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ to encourage Québec workers to better prepare for retirement. Developed by the Fonds' Economic Training Centre, the workshop addresses personal finance topics such as budgeting, saving, personal balance sheet and retirement.

"As a young adult who's been in the workforce for just over five years now, I find that there's very little information out there about saving and retirement. At the Fonds de solidarité FTQ workshop, we were able to speak plainly about these topics, which are not always discussed openly. We met exceptional trainers who had us actively participate as they were teaching us new things about saving for retirement. It was a great workshop and I highly recommend it," said Gabriel Deslauriers, sales advisor at Groupe Poirier.

"We're glad we gave our employees the opportunity to learn more about savings and retirement. We're regularly asked questions about this and the workshop provided all the answers along with concrete examples. It expanded their knowledge about saving and retirement in general, which was great for our new employees who have contributions with their previous employer and for our young recruits just starting out in the job market. The fact that more than half of our staff chose to attend shows that there's a need for this type of education and that we must continue supporting them in their personal finances. We appreciate the Fonds' collaboration in this regard," said Groupe Poirier's HR coordinator Josée Labrosse.

"Saving for retirement is a real issue that must be kept on the social and economic agenda in Québec. We need to keep this issue in the spotlight so that we don't fall further behind Ontario in terms of seniors' wealth by encouraging workers to put money aside today and by making it as easy as possible for them to save for retirement," said Janie Béïque, President and CEO of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ, who will be visiting Rouyn-Noranda and Val-d'Or today and tomorrow.

According to recent data from Statistics Canada, in 2020 the average income of people aged 65 and over was almost $9,000 higher in Ontario than in Québec ($49,062 versus $40,331).¹

Also, 40% of retired people in Québec receive the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS), which is reserved for low-income retirees. Only Newfoundland and Labrador and New Brunswick have proportionally more GIS recipients than Québec.² We must therefore make it a priority to encourage more people to save for retirement.

By 2027, the Fonds wants to encourage 100,000 new shareholders without a pension plan or earning less than $55,000 to save for a better retirement.

Providing workers with economic training and helping them prepare for retirement are two components of the Fonds mission, along with driving Québec's economic development and helping create, maintain and preserve jobs.

About the Fonds de solidarité FTQ

The Fonds de solidarité FTQ invests to build a better society by channelling the savings of its 753,125 shareholders into development and risk capital investments to help Québec transition to a green economy, to a human-centred world of work, and to a healthier society. The Fonds offers businesses unsecured financing and strategic support. With $17.8 billion in net assets as at November 30, 2022, the Fonds has supported more than 3,600 partner companies and over 296,000 jobs.

Please read the prospectus before buying shares of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ. Copies of the prospectus may be obtained online at fondsftq.com, from a local representative or at the offices of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ. The shares of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ are not guaranteed; their value changes and past performance may not be repeated.

¹ Statistics Canada: Table 11-10-0039-01 Tax filers and dependants, seniors with income by source of income and age

² Employment and Social Development Canada: Old Age Security (OAS) - Number of Persons Receiving OAS Benefits, by Province and by Type, August 2022.

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