Episode summary
Demystifying Pensions: Economic Impact & the Future of Retirement | Celine Chiovitti (OMERS)
Summary
Large pension plans are framed as economic and social infrastructure, not just retirement vehicles. Celine Chiovitti says OMERS’ footprint reaches Ontario through payouts, investment activity, jobs, and tax revenues, and that retirees with pensions report higher life satisfaction, greater financial security, lower stress, and more community involvement than the general population.
She argues that pensions have been communicated too narrowly and too formally in the past, and that the industry needs simpler, more accessible storytelling for members ranging from age 12 to 106. OMERS is using seminars, member tools, and multiple communication channels to help people understand pensions as part of a broader life plan, not just a formula on a statement.
Chiovitti says younger generations are more engaged with retirement than many assume, in part because of higher living costs, debt, and housing pressure. Looking ahead, she sees aging demographics, longer lifespans, and more fluid careers creating urgency around portability, access, transparency, and modernization. She says AI should support operational efficiency and simplification, but not replace human interaction at sensitive moments.
Key takeaways
- Celine Chiovitti says OMERS’ 2025 contribution was about $15.3 billion to Ontario GDP, created about 135,000 jobs, and generated about $4.2 billion in tax revenue.
- Chiovitti says 4,000 OMERS retirees scored about 2.4 times higher in life satisfaction than the general population and reported less stress and more financial security.
- She says younger workers are more interested in pensions than commonly assumed, and that cost of living and housing pressure are driving that engagement.
- Chiovitti says the biggest pension challenges are aging demographics, longevity, and more fluid careers that demand portability and plan modernization.
- She says AI should be used to simplify complexity and improve service, but not to replace human support in high-stakes retirement or life events.
Notable quotes
“We sort of think about it as social infrastructure. And so if you think about the cornerstones of how communities run”
“what we know um is based on um the contribution the economic contribution in 2025. Homer's contributed about third sorry about $15.3 billion to the GDP across Ontario”
“I think trust is the probably the number one thing and it's easier to build trust when you're having sort of that humanto human connection”
“AI should help us solve a lot of like operational problems become more efficient and help us simplify sort of the promise”
How the episode opens
Hello, my name is Lauren Bailey, deputy editor at Markets Group and I'm here with Selene Chaveet, chief pension officer at Canada's Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System. Seline, thank you so much for joining me. — Thank you so much for having me, Lauren. I'm really excited to be here. So Selene, I'm just going to dive right in. Um there's a lot of change in the pension landscape right now, but um I think first we should talk a little bit about what role large pension plans like plays in the broader economy and infrastructure.
So I think I think broader pension plans play a really significant role um in economies and in communities. We sort of think about it as social infrastructure. And so if you think about the cornerstones of how communities run, one of the main things is, you know, fiscal sustainability.
And it becomes even more important um in this aging world that we all kind of find ourselves in. Um and so we've always sort of known the impact that pension plans play on individual members and providing them access with sort of secure, stable income in their older years and so in the most case in more vulnerable years. Um, but what we're really starting to dig into and do more research around is what impact that actually has on economies as a whole.
And so we've just recently worked with Cania, the Canadian Center for Economic Analysis, and updating some research. We did research back in 2023 to really start to demonstrate what is the economic impact um that pension plans like have um on the Canadian or the Ontario economy. And so we asked them to sort of run those numbers.
And then the other thing we we leaned into a little bit um was that you know social value.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- pension systems impact
- retirement security
- generational retirement planning
- pension governance and longevity
- ai pension modernization
Companies and tickers mentioned
- OMERS
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Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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