History and Accomplishments

The APRUO was formed in 1998 in response to concerns of retired academic staff at the University of Ottawa that their interests as retirees and their voices on issues of the day were not adequately represented. The initial impetus for the Association’s founding resulted from the question of how the  sizable pension plan surplus at the time should be managed, but over time the Association has evolved to further the interests of its members on a large range of issues and promote good relations with all members of the University community.

Over time, the APRUO has gained recognition by the University Administration and the Association of Professors at the University of Ottawa (APUO) as the official representative of the University's academic retirees, with voting representation on key committees and direct access to the Administration. Recently, in collaboration with the Administrative Staff Retirees Association (ASRA), we successfully lobbied for catch-up pension indexation increases covering previous years when full indexation was not credited. In the transition to the new health care benefits administrator, Canada Life, during the autumn of 2020, we provided information to members, sponsored an online information session, and assisted members who encountered problems with the transition. These are only two current examples of the work the APRUO does on behalf of its members.