Scotiabank Employee Group letter to members

May, 2001

Dear AFTER Member:

Good News on AFTER’s Progress - Court Rules in Our Favour - Read On!!

AFTER Wins Big Victory

It’s great to be able to deliver good news to well over 1,000 former National Trust Pension Plan members and current Scotiabank employees who have supported your colleagues and Committee members for more than 18 months, in their fight for an equitable distribution of the surplus in our Pension Plan confirmed by the Bank to be $160 million as at October 31, 2000.

We previously reported to you that we were going to court in the Monsanto appeal because Scotiabank was using the May, 2000 Tribunal decision as an excuse not to deal with AFTER.  In 3 days of argument last November the issue of surplus distribution in pension plan partial wind-ups was dealt with and resolved. In a unanimous (3 - 0) decision issued March 19, 2001, the panel of three Judges of the Ontario Divisional Court threw out the earlier Tribunal’s (2 -1) ruling.  This is a great victory and for Plan members, retirees, deferred annuitants, and active members of the Plan who are still working at Scotiabank. 

It’s ‘Round One’ of our struggle but Scotiabank and others with selfish interests are choosing to prolong the fight by seeking to appeal the decision to a higher Court. Perhaps they think they can “litigate us to death” despite our success. We believe that this approach only strengthens the resolve our Group.

Scotiabank Hides Behind the Law - Not Interested in Pension Plan Members’ Plight

AFTER representatives traveled to Halifax to attend Scotiabank’s Annual Shareholders’ Meeting on March 6^th, 2001, to again raise this important issue.  Concurrently, we issued another media release which again raised our profile and created some embarrassment for the Bank. 

At that Annual Meeting, Bank executives publicly admitted they had not resolved our long-outstanding issues. Scotiabank/National Trust CEO, Robert Chisholm, finally agreed to meet with us, which he did on March 27^th. He was accompanied by Senior Vice-President, Human Resources, Ms. Diane Caravan.  Despite the Bank’s public assurances that they would deal fairly, openly and responsibly with AFTER, we have nothing of substance to report other than the legal steps taken by the Bank. 

They have decided to prolong the fight by filing an application to appeal the unanimous decision to the Court of Appeal of Ontario, the highest level in Ontario. If the Bank does receive permission to appeal, that appeal is likely to take many months.  If the Bank loses again, they may try to go all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, i.e. the highest and final level in the country, to prevent you receiving an equitable distribution of your surplus. 

Simply put, while the Bank has acknowledged that its own senior executives will receive huge pensions, they are comfortable with the idea that our membership, which includes elderly, sick, and those less well-off and their survivors, can wait in line for a much longer period. Scotiabank acknowledged that your support of AFTER would have no negative impact on any supporter’s pension entitlement, which is your right. However, we will keep all lines of dialogue with the Bank open.

AFTER Needs Your Continued Monetary Suppor

In earlier correspondence, your Committee had expected your one-time support of $150 would be sufficient to take on the Bank and win.  We have been successful to date, however, Scotiabank’s defensive and aggressive stance has now forced us to ask you for a further cash injection to continue our battle.  Although our “war chest” is far from depleted, we must ensure we have sufficient funds to carry on this fight as long as it takes, and we want the Bank to know that we are not going away.

Please complete the attached “tear-off” and mail it with your payment to AFTER’s lawyers, Koskie Minsky. We suggest an amount of $125.00 or any other amount (higher or lower) according to your means.  It is our intent to refund all money received if there is a settlement that covers our costs. We wish to emphasize that you are not under a legal obligation to send additional funds, however, we feel very strongly we are doing the right thing, and are sure you feel the same way.

You can check with “Canada Customs & Revenue Agency” (previously Revenue Canada) advisory staff, toll-free or through the ‘web’ at www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca, to see if your contributions to AFTER are deductible for income tax purposes. You don’t need to give your name.  Please do NOT call Koskie Minsky or your AFTER committee representative, as this is a personal matter.

What Next … What Should I Do Now?

·         Support our cause by way of an additional financial contribution;

·         Write your local Member of Parliament, Federal & Provincial. Tell them about your personal situation and how the Bank’s actions are hurting you and your family;

·         Call your local newspaper.  Give them the name of your local representative who can share with them the core issues affecting us;

·         Mark your calendar for Tuesday, March 5^th, 2002. It’s the date of the next Scotiabank AGM. It’s in Toronto.  We will ensure the Bank, its directors and shareholders recognize us;

·         Write & telephone Robert Chisholm robert.chisholm@scotiabank.com (416) 933-2299 and Diane Caravan diane.caravan@scotiabank.com (416) 933-2388 at 44 King Street West, Toronto ON M5H 1H1 to tell them factually how you feel in your own words. If they ignore you, write them again or telephone them, toll-free, at 1-800-472-6842 (Scotiabank’s Ombudsman number is 416-933-3299 or 1-800-785-8772). Give the letter to your local Scotiabank branch and ask them to mail it for you;

·        If you don’t have ‘web’ access at home, visit your local library to check our progress at www.koskieminsky.com. It’s free, too;

·      Talk to your NT & Scotiabank colleagues who haven’t joined us yet because, for example, of the fear of Scotiabank reprisal. Give them the name of your local AFTER representative who will do the rest confidentially, or refer them to our web-site where a retainer form and additional supporter sheet may be found and printed.

·         Stay committed.

Thank you for your support.