Winterly Healthy!
The NBTF Group Insurance Trustees care about your health!
During winter, the lack of sunshine, cold/humid weather or the incidence of many cold and flu viruses weaken our immune system. How can we help it get back on track? We are giving you 8 tips:
- Wash your hands frequently. Preferably with soap and water.
- Stay well hydrated. Drink at least 8 glasses of water per day. Moisturize your lips, hands and skin, not to mention your hair.
- Get your vitamin D. Less present during winter, it can be found in orange juice, eggs, cod liver oil, sardines, fortified milk, or by taking vitamin supplements.
- Get enough sleep. The lack of light and the cold weather increase fatigue, but it does not mean that you should sleep for a longer period of time. Set your room temperature between 16o to 20o for better sleep.
- Protect your eyes and skin from the sun. Wear sunglasses and apply sunscreen of at least 15 SPF to your face and neck.
- Cough or sneeze without contaminating. Use a tissue and discard or cough/sneeze in your elbow to prevent the spread of viruses.
- Check the weather forecast. Take advantage of a sunny day to do an outdoor activity.
- Try phototherapy (or wear colourful clothing). This helps treat the winter blues.
Participate to the Health Challenge for a chance to win a pair of snowshoes! (value of $150)
This challenge is intended to all teachers, active and retirees.
*All activities may be completed individually or in small groups, but only one prize will be awarded among all participants.
The winner of Brain Health Conscious challenge is Mélanie Aubé.
She will receive a box of logic and board games.
Congratulations!
Notice of Interest for NBTF Group Insurance Trustees
The NBTF Group Insurance active plan members are hereby invited to submit their application to sit as a trustee of the NBTF Group Insurance Plan. The NBTF will be seeking one member from AEFNB and one member from NBTA to fill four vacant positions, as per our By-Laws.
Should you be interested in sitting as a trustee, please take note of the following guidelines.
NBTF Policies require the following:
- Trustees should be appointed for a term of five years and may be eligible for reappointment for a two-year term at the discretion of the Federation Executive Committee (Policy BA-1 (2)).
- No person may become a Trustee unless he or she is a participant in one of the plans. Further on ceasing to be a participant in the plan, he or she shall immediately cease to be a Trustee. (Policy BA-1 (3))
- No person shall sit as a Trustee if he/she is declaring bankruptcy or has declared bankruptcy in the past (Policy BA- 1(3) b).
In May 2020, the NBTF Executive Committee will appoint two new trustees, one member of the AEFNB and one member of the NBTA, participants in one of the Group Insurance Plans, to a five-year mandate schedule to begin on July 1st, 2020.
Trustees have an average of four meetings per year and have the obligation to maintain a professional education portfolio throughout their mandate.
Application deadline: April 15, 2020
For more information, please consult the NBTF Website.
Your Group Benefits: Long Term Disability
If you become Totally Disabled while insured and meet the Entitlement Criteria for this benefit, Manulife Financial will pay a disability benefit.
Definition of Totally Disabled
For the first twenty-four (24) consecutive months of benefit payment, “Totally disabled” shall mean that you:
have a disease, disorder, or injury that can be diagnosed and demonstrated by objective and/or medically determinable standards, and;
have impairments of physical and/or mental functioning caused by that disease, disorder, or injury which impairments are measurable by objective and medically accepted examination and/or investigation techniques.
The impairments referred to in the bullets above must be such that they cannot be reasonably accommodated by your employer and they must result in your inability to perform any and every duty of your occupation (irrespective of the availability of employment).
After such 24 months, “totally disabled” as defined above shall mean your inability to perform any and every duty or any occupation (irrespective of availability of employment) for which you are reasonably qualified by education, training or experience.
Benefits will be payable for each month or partial month that such total disability continues beyond the applicable qualifying disability period. Benefits will not be payable for more than the applicable maximum benefit period.
Benefit Amount – 60% of your monthly earnings as of the date your disability commenced
Qualifying Period – 180 consecutive days or the duration of accumulated sick leave, whichever is greater
Benefits are payable from the end of the Qualifying Period. Benefits are not payable during the Qualifying Period.
You must be receiving regular, ongoing care and treatment from a physician during the Qualifying Period in order for benefits to be payable at the end of the Qualifying Period.
Maximum Benefit Period – to age 65
Termination Age – to age 65, or retirement, whichever is earlier.
Entitlement Criteria –
To be entitled to Long Term Disability benefits, you must meet the following criteria:
- you must be continuously Totally Disabled throughout the Qualifying Period, and
- you must be under the continuing care of a physician.
At any time, Manulife Financial may require you to submit to a medical, psychiatric, psychological, educational and/or vocational examination or evaluation by an examiner selected by Manulife Financial.
Submitting a Claim –
To submit a claim, you must complete the Long Term Disability claim package, which is available from the benefit administration department. The package includes a member statement, an attending physician statement and an employer statement.
The completed claim package must be received by Manulife Financial within 6 months from the end of the Qualifying Period.
For more information on Long Term Disability Insurance, please refer to the Benefits Booklet on the NBTSF Website or contact Johnson Inc. directly at 1-888-851-5500.
New Web Page
Visit the new Trustees section to access all documentation pertaining to the NBTF Group Insurance Plan with a single click: https://nbtffenb.ca/nbtf-group-insurance-trustees/
The page contains all the forms, important documents (including the benefits booklet), online resources and publications about the NBTF Group Insurance Plan.