How to plan for retirement when you have no pension

That’s no longer the case. Just 38% of paid workers in Canada were covered by a registered pension plan in 2021, the most recent year surveyed by Statistics Canada. The retreat of pension coverage is particularly marked in the private sector.

The news isn’t all bad. Pension coverage has stabilized over the past two decades after falling significantly between 1980 and 2005. The number of Canadians covered by workplace pensions actually increased 1.8% in 2021, to 6.7 million, with the fastest growth coming from defined-benefit plans, the gold standard of pension coverage. Still, that failed to keep pace with the rate of employment growth.

That leaves a majority of Canadians needing to cobble together their own retirement plan based on government programs, registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs), tax-free savings accounts (TFSAs) and non-registered investments, and they’re anxious about it. A survey conducted in August 2024 for CPP Investments showed 61% of Canadian adults are afraid of running out of money in retirement. The number rises to 67% for those aged 28 to 44. A separate survey by Manulife Financial Corp. indicated 51% of Canadian employees feel they have fallen behind in their retirement savings.

Does this sound like you? The good news is it’s seldom too late to improve your retirement readiness. And every person’s situation is different. Single people, couples, employees, self-employed workers, those born in Canada and newcomers each have different needs and challenges. Below are links to MoneySense articles offering practical advice to people in particular situations with no pension:

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About Michael McCullough

Michael is a financial writer and editor in Duncan, B.C. He’s a former managing editor of Canadian Business and editorial director of Canada Wide Media. He also writes for The Globe and Mail and BCBusiness.