It’s hard to believe that just recently, people weren’t cutting their own hair or binge-watching Tiger King. At the beginning of the year, defined benefit funding levels were at record highs and many pension plan sponsors were considering reducing their pension risk. Fast forward a few months and the novel coronavirus has turned the world […]
Defined contribution pension plan sponsors may face workforce planning challenges coming out of the coronavirus pandemic as older plan members whose account balances were hard hit by this year’s market volatility delay their retirements. “We saw a lot of presenteeism coming out of the [global financial crisis] — are we going to see that again?” asks […]
While many Canadians can’t wait to start drawing down Canada Pension Plan benefits when they turn 65, it’s important to consider whether that’s the right move Bonnie-Jeanne MacDonald, director of financial security research at Ryerson University’s National Institute on Ageing Delaying CPP is the safest, most inexpensive approach to receiving more secure retirement income. Yet […]
In 2009, when Vincent Morin walked through the doors of Air Canada as the vice-president of asset allocation and strategy for its investment division, he faced a tough situation. The company’s eight defined benefit pension plans, which buy units of a single master trust fund, were facing a $2.6 billion deficit. In the following years, […]
Plan sponsors and insurers are increasingly wading into the waters of pharmacogenetic testing by offering the service to employees making long-term disability claims. In 2017, Sun Life partnered with the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health for a pilot project that offered pharmacogenetic testing to plan members on disability leave due to a mental-health condition. […]
The Pension Investment Association of Canada is raising concerns about the impact of the impending merger between Aon and Willis Towers Watson on pension plans and funds in Canada. In a letter to the Competition Bureau, Simon Fréchet, the association’s chair, said the PIAC’s members use actuarial consulting services to support the effective fiduciary management […]
The Canada Revenue Agency is waiving the minimum one per cent employer contribution requirement for defined contribution pension plans for the rest of 2020. To take advantage of the contribution relief, employers must amend their DC plans to suspend accruals for the year, meaning no employer or employee contributions can be made. Further, DC plan […]
As provincial governments start to lay out their plans for slowly reopening the economy, employers have a unique return-to-work scenario to handle. Appropriate sick leave and accommodation policies will be key pieces of the new normal, said Alex Boucher, principal and total health management leader at Mercer Canada, during a webinar on Friday. A second and possibly further […]
League Inc. is offering a free three-month trial of its Health Benefits Experience platform in a bid to alleviate the health-care and administrative overloads that human resources teams are experiencing during the coronavirus crisis. “This is an incredibly challenging time in our communities, for individuals, families and businesses,” said Mike Serbinis, founder and chief executive officer […]
With crude oil futures contracts crashing through the floor into negative territory at the beginning of the week, what opportunities are opening up for institutional investors? Panic set in on commodity trading floors on Monday because physical storage options for oil were filling up fast, with much less demand for petrol from consumers due to […]