BC FORUM News - from The Advocate, October, 2014

What are you doing after work?

I went in not knowing if I had enough money to retire, and came out knowing that I had a lot more work to do – and not just on money – before I retire.”

That’s what Canadian Media Guild member Terri Theodore, a news editor with Canadian Press, says she learned during a preretirement course delivered by BC FORUM in Vancouver.

“What Are You Doing After Work?” was developed by the Congress of Union Retirees of Canada (CURC). The course is delivered by instructors who are retired and who can share personal experiences of living life after work.

As Terri Theodore discovered during the two-day course, there’s a lot to think about when you are considering retirement.

“The worksheets made me think about how much I spend, where I spend it and what I need to do to What are you doing after work? save for retirement. Another worksheet also got me thinking about if I’ll be living in the same home a few years from now, never mind when I turn 65.”

She says the advice on financial advisors will come in very handy.

Terri says the instructors also brought up things that hadn’t occurred to her including, “the need to widen my social circle, thinking about how I’ll occupy my time when I retire and where I’ll live.”

The coordination and the instructors were provided by BC FORUM, the B.C. Branch of CURC.

Terri Theodore recommends that if you’re thinking about retirement you should also think about taking the course.

“While I know I have a lot of work to do to get to retirement, this course has sent me in the right direction. I have already recommended it to my co-workers, and won’t hesitate to recommend the course to others.”

BC FORUM offers the course free of charge to affiliated unions and union pension plans. We ask only that you cover the instructors’ travel expenses, room rental, lunches and coffee breaks for participants.

To obtain more information, to book the course, or to discuss how the course can be adapted to provide maximum benefit to union members, please contact BC FORUM at 604 688-4565, 1 800 896-5678, or bcforum@bcfed.ca.