Welcome to the CBSA RA

Every year, numerous CBSA employees from across the nation leave their careers behind and move into retirement and, when they end their productive and satisfying careers with the CBSA, they carry their knowledge and experience out the door with them on their last day.

The idea of the CBSA RA began with the realization that the training, experience, network of contacts, and esprit de corps that CBSA employees develop over the course of their careers can still be put to meaningful use even after their retirement from the CBSA. These dedicated employees, now retirees, are still often willing and eager to be of individual and/or collective service to the CBSA and each other (or their families and dependents), as well as to their country and local communities.

The CBSA RA exists, first and foremost, to be a resource for those who have retired from the CBSA or from one of its legacy organizations that no longer exist. Along with the retirees, the Association also strives to be a resource for their families and dependents when needed. The Association, and the retirees who give of themselves to it, are contributing voluntarily to the well-being of other retirees of the CBSA and its now defunct legacy organizations.

In essence, the CBSA RA serves as the final step in the employee’s career path – to a happy, healthy and productive retirement – by opening a pathway to continued engagement with peers, in providing suggestions for new opportunities within and outside the CBSA, and through highlighting avenues to obtain additional support in retirement when required.

The CBSA RA provides a vehicle for CBSA retirees to:

• continue to maintain contact with the Agency, as the Association provides a conduit for accurate and timely information to the CBSA retiree community on developments within the Agency and on retirement issues that concern them. It, in effect, provides a continuum of community and support for employees as they transition into retirement and ensures credible, timely and accurate sharing of information and program changes related to pensions, benefits and opportunities;
• continue to be an informed and trained resource for the Agency and provide service, on a voluntary basis, to the CBSA in ways such as assisting with recruitment drives, and/or providing mentorship to current employees within the organization in order to ensure the CBSA’s tradition of excellence and shared values is fostered and developed in the next generation of employees and managers;
• promote and advance the mission, values and work of the CBSA as proud CBSA retirees and members of the CBSA RA;
• promote the physical, social and economic well-being of the CBSA RA members and their families by providing a sense of community and support to all its members;
• provide support on a voluntary basis to worthy community services or organizations of a charitable or benevolent nature under the stewardship of the CBSA and the CBSA RA;
• continue to maintain contact through the Association with other Agency retirees with whom they have worked and have forged lifelong friendships.

The CBSA RA will maintain a dedicated secure website to promote the Association and to provide its members with accurate information on post-retirement issues and resources. Further products will be forthcoming as the RA matures and products are developed.

The CBSA RA is open for membership, on a voluntary basis, to any employee of the CBSA who retires in, and maintains, good standing from the organization. CBSA employees who are within their last year of employment prior to their confirmed retirement date are also eligible to join the CBSA RA, as are those who retired prior to the creation of the CBSA from a CBSA legacy organization that no longer exists, such as the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency (CCRA) and Canada Customs. Acceptance will be granted to those meeting the aforementioned criteria and who make application with payment of a nominal dues fee for the first year. Payment of subsequent yearly dues by December 31 each year will keep a member in good standing for the following year.

Current membership rates, as well as a fillable Membership Application Form are available on this website under the Membership tab.

The CBSA RA is the result of the efforts of a small group of current and retired CBSA members from across the country who have, for a number of years now, been diligently discussing, planning and voluntarily working towards its creation. Much discussion with the CBSA itself has also taken place during this journey in order to secure the Agency’s endorsement for the RA and a commitment to two-way communication with the RA at the national and regional levels.

It is now hoped that other CBSA retirees from across the country will see the value added of the RA, and will come forward and express a willingness to contribute their skills and knowledge to help the RA develop its full potential in the months and years ahead. Remember, the CBSA RA is intended to be a national affiliation of CBSA retirees contributing to our collective well-being in retirement through the sharing of common experiences and knowledge. Can you help us all to do that?

If you would like to be involved in the ongoing development and administration of the CBSA RA, and have a say in what the RA can become as it works toward realizing its full potential, then please contact us today and let us know. You can reach us at admin@cbsaretirees.ca