Ken Haire wins battle to get spouse’s pension
Recognition was what Ken Haire was looking for from CN Rail.
He and his late spouse, Gerry Schwarz, had spent 33 years building a life that took them from Rochester, N.Y., to Toronto and then finally to Haire’s hometown of Harbour Grace.
Schwarz had fallen in love with Newfoundland and Labrador when the couple decided to spend their days there in 2003.
In 2012, Schwarz suffered sudden heart failure and died. A longtime CN Rail employee who had retired in 1991, Schwarz had arranged for Haire, now 71, to obtain his pension in the wake of his death.
However, that wasn’t to be the case.
Shortly after Schwarz's death, CN’S pension and benefits administration informed Haire he no longer qualified for that pension.
While CN had updated its definition of marriage to include those of the same sex in 2002 and having a conjugal relationship of more than one year, that policy was not retroactive to 1991, the company said.
Haire was left with nothing. What hurt even more, Haire says, was how his and Schwarz’s romance was cheapened by a handful of words.
“I went from being his spouse, and when they sent me the letter they referred to me as Gerry’s spouse … to a roommate for 33 years in less than a month,” Haire told Saltwire Network Monday afternoon.
That changed Tuesday evening when Haire was informed by CN Rail that the company would immediately correct what it called a lag in updating rules of its pension policies. Haire will now receive Schwarz’s pension.
The call was affirmation that the 33-year relationship he shared with Schwarz meant something, Haire said.
“I got the recognition that I wanted from CN, but also I think I’ve helped open the door for others that are in the same situation and maybe I’ve notified the large companies that they really can’t treat their employees any way they want,” he said.
The news of the upcoming change ends Haire’s nineyear fight with CN Rail.
In a prepared statement, the company apologized to those who were affected by its outdated policies.
“The company has made firm commitments to increasing inclusion and diversity in our workforce, both in Canada and the U.S.,” read the statement.
Because of this decision, CN will attempt to make amends for other similar discrepancies with its policies. The change will allow the life partners of other late employees to collect survivor benefits of their loved ones retroactively, CN said.
“A preliminary search has identified a small number of similar cases among our pensioners, and CN is contacting them to correct their situation,” CN said.
During Haire’s long battle with CN, he had the support of friends such as Judy and Selby Rogers of Harbour Grace.
Recently, the trio has shared a home in the community. It became a home for Haire, with the remnants of the life he shared with Schwarz.