The Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology Pension Plan (CAAT) board says it has strengthened the plan’s corporate governance rules following the completion of an independent review.

The new rules come after former CEO Derek Dobson and Board Chair Don Smith were ousted following an executive-compensation controversy that resulted in Dobson repaying $1.6 million vacation pay tied to unused holidays that he had sought to carry over from a previous year, contravening CAAT policy.

Along with employee compensation, the revamped rules include a new workplace-relationship policy and succession-planning guidelines.

“Taken together, these actions help provide CAAT with the leadership and governance practices needed to maintain the prudent and responsible management of the plan,” said the board in its letter. “Of course, good governance only gets stronger through ongoing improvement. The board will continue to act in the members’ best interests, so the plan can help support the retirement they want and deserve,” the board said.

The governance review was led by Carol Hansell, senior partner at a law firm Hansell LLP. CAAT continued to emphasize that the review did not concern the plan’s financial health or funded status and that members’ pensions remain secure.

The board announced the moves in an open letter to members and employers but did not release Hansell’s report. The announcement came after the board recently launched a search for a permanent CEO. The board said it is seeking a leader with strategic vision and operational discipline while strengthening succession planning for board and committee leadership, the CEO and senior executives.

The board also said it has enhanced its oversight of CEO and senior executive compensation and increased transparency by expanding executive compensation disclosure in CAAT’s 2025 annual report and planned compensation reporting.

As part of the changes, CAAT updated its workplace-relationship policy to prohibit internal relationships involving the CEO or senior executives, regardless of reporting relationships. The board also confirmed that human-resources policies apply equally to all employees, including those governing vacation carry-over and vacation pay.

The board said it will continue reviewing the skills and experience of trustees to ensure it maintains the expertise required to oversee a pension plan of CAAT’s size and complexity. Seven new trustees joined the board over the past year.

The letter also noted that the board appointed a new chair, vice-chair and acting CEO in 2026, and introduced a new leadership team to execute the plan’s strategy and maintain stakeholder confidence.

Kevin Fahey, has been serving as the organization’s CEO and acting plan manager, while retaining his chief investment officer duties, since Dobson departed in XXX. Audrey Wubbenhorst succeeded Smith after the Ontario Public Sector Employees removed him as chair. Smith had been OPSEU’s representative on the board. He was removed after other board members and CAAT executives became concerned about the $1.6-million vacation payment provided to Dobson amid questions regarding whether he was eligible for it in accordance with CAAT’s compensation policy. Prior to being removed, Smith was suspended.

The board and executives were also concerned about a board-sanctioned consensual relationship that Dobson had with a CAAT employee, according to multiple reports. He had disclosed the relationship previously to the board and CAAT employees.

Established in 1967, CAAT is an independent, jointly governed defined benefit pension plan that serves more than 800 participating employers across 20 industries and about 125,000 members.

Pictured: The Well mixed-use property in downtown Toronto, in which CAAT invests indirectly.

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