Frequently Asked Questions

Initial eligibility: Members must contribute 220 hours to be eligible. Benefits activate the first day of the month following the month the 220 hours are reached. For example, if a member works in April and May and reaches 220 hours as of May 30, coverage begins July 1. (Benefit eligibility may differ depending on membership type and collective agreement.)

Continuation of eligibility: Members must maintain 110 hours per month to stay active. If hours can't be reached, self-payment options are available.

Members must reach 220 hours worked to be eligible — these hours cannot be bought. However, once eligible, if a member cannot contribute the 110 monthly hours, they have the option to pay for that month's benefits.

Please reach out to the Benefits Department at 519-332-1089 ext. 127 or Green Shield+ at 1-888-525-7587 with any questions regarding coverage.

Retirees in good standing are eligible to pay for benefits, as long as there are hours banked in the 12 months prior to retirement. Please contact the Benefits Department at 519-332-1089 ext. 127 for further information.

Once you are an active member in our plan, you can add dependents, including: your legal spouse, or a common-law spouse of at least 12 months whose information has been on file with the benefit office for more than one year; your unmarried children under age 21 who are dependent on you for support; your children age 21–24 registered as full-time students in post-secondary education; and functionally impaired children who are totally dependent on you for support.

Claims can be submitted through the Green Shield+ app, submitted using a claim form, or completed in person at our office. See Benefits Overview for the claim forms.

Any funds owing are paid within 2 business days of the processing date if you are signed up for EFT. Paper claims (submitted by mail) and scanned/uploaded claims (submitted online or through the app) take a little longer, depending on the volume of claims awaiting processing.

Members transferring in or out of Local 1089 are entitled to transfer their hour bank. When you transfer out to another local, we must receive a reciprocal request from your new local's benefit plan to transfer your contribution funds. Please note: failure to request reciprocal hours may result in the loss of these hours.

Members must bring their own construction safety boots and hard hat, unless instructed otherwise.

A minimum of grade 10 is required, but grade 12 is preferred.

The apprenticeship program usually takes two to three years to complete, as long as the apprentice is steadily employed, successfully completes the in-school training period, and fills out the apprenticeship logbook completely.

If you are currently a member of LiUNA Local 1089, there is no cost to take our listed training courses at the Training Centre.

See our Courses Offered and Certification Schedule pages, or contact the Training Centre at 519-332-1089 ext. 129.