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On December 9, 2009, Bill 236, An Act to amend the Pension Benefits Act (pdf) was introduced in the Ontario legislature.  According to a government press release, this is the first step in a multi-step pension reform process.  The most significant changes include:

• Pension benefits will vest immediately rather than after two years;
• Grow-in benefits that allow members to grow into subsidized early retirement provisions, will be extended to include employees who are terminated without cause;
• Phased retirement provisions will allow certain plan members who have had their pay reduced to receive partial pension benefits;
• Partial wind-ups will no longer be permissible;
• The procedures for sale of business transactions involving a pension plan will be streamlined;
• Changes will be made to allow the lump sum cash payment of a pension if the amount of pension is less than 4% of the Year's Maximum Pensionable Earnings under the Canada Pension Plan;
• Surplus payments to a plan sponsor upon wind-up of a pension plan will be permitted, if there is a surplus sharing agreement with current and former members and beneficiaries;
• 45 days' notice will be required for all pension plan amendments; and
• Member statements and other communications will be allowed to be sent electronically.

For more information on Bill 236 and its impact, please see Heenan Blaikie's Pension Pulse " Ontario Pension Reform Part 1" (pdf).