A New Democratic Party government would protect pensions and prohibit companies from unilaterally changing the rules after an employee retires, NDP Leader Tom Mulcair said Tuesday.

“A deal is a deal is a deal,” Mulcair said, responding to a question from Gary Oberg, president of the National Association of Federal Retirees.

“Nobody should be ever allowed retroactively to change your pension deal. That’s what you bought, that’s what paid for and that should be respected.”

“That’s going to become another very big issue in years to come.”

Mulcair said the NDP would also move to better protect workers’ pensions when a company goes bankrupt.

“Canadians have noticed a lot of companies in the forestry sector, we saw it with some of the telecoms, where Canadians had invested. It’s deferred salary, they put it into their pension and Canada is one of the few countries in the OECD to offer zero protection for pensions in the event of bankruptcy and insolvency.”

If other countries were able to work out a system to protect pensions, Canada can do it too, he said.

Mulcair said he would like more Canadians to have access to a defined benefit pension plan and would improve the Canadian and Quebec pension plans.

“I think as a best first step towards allowing all Canadians to retire with dignity, that we should be working to increase….the CPP and the QPP. The structure is already there.”

The NDP has pledged to reverse changes that Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government has made to the eligibility for old age security payments and to return the threshold to 65 from 67 years old.

Mulcair’s comments come as public service unions and groups like the association of federal retirees are fighting the government’s plan to change the Public Service Health Care Plan. In December, the National Association of Federal Retirees announced it had filed suit against the federal government for forcing changes to the plan.

Posing his question to Mulcair, Oberg said the prospect of changes to pensions is one that concerns his members.

“There are cases out there that upon retirement, there are organizations, companies, whatever that person has worked with over a period of time that want to change the terms of that retirement after they have retired,” Oberg said. “That is of great concern to us as retirees.”

Mulcair’s pledge to protect pensioners came as he unveiled another plank in his party’s election platform Tuesday, announcing plans to cut small business tax rates and to introduce an innovation tax credit.

Speaking before members of the Economic Club of Canada, Mulcair said an NDP government would also move to increase manufacturing investment by extending by two years the existing accelerated cost allowance — scheduled to expire this year.

“If we’re going to attract and compete for the manufacturing jobs of the future, we must trigger greater private sector investment in research,” Mulcair said. My plan will ensure that the companies that are developing innovative products and jobs of the future get the support they need.”

More later …