Employers need to prepare for a new normal in their pension plans as the economy continues to lag and people are living longer, Mercer’s Jean-Philippe Provost told attendees at the firm’s annual Retirement Outlook and Fearless Forecast event today in Toronto. Provost pointed to new de-risking opportunities, such as the $530-million combined annuity buy-in transaction […]
Sun Life has completed a combined annuity buy-in transaction valued at $530 million with two Canadian pension plan sponsors to transfer investment, longevity and inflation risk to Sun Life. The annuity buy-in for the two plans, which opted not to be named, were combined, with the pricing conditional on both purchases occurring at the same time. This generated significant cost […]
Overseeing a team serves up its share of challenges, from personality clashes to deadline crises. But as companies increasingly outsource work to independent contractors, there’s a new challenge emerging: managing workers they never see. That’s where hiring a chief freelance officer comes in. That person can oversee all aspects of working with independent contractors—anything from […]
The solvency position of Canadian pension plans were down slightly in 2015, according to the latest Mercer Pension Health Index. The median solvency ratio of the pension plans of Mercer’s clients stood at 85% on December 31, 2015, down from 88% at the beginning of the year, with around nine out of 10 plans still […]
With interest rates bottoming out, Canadian DB plans should look beyond traditional de-risking methods— such as liability-driven investing (LDI)—and consider equities. There are several ways to incorporate equities into a plan’s de-risking framework. Plan sponsors that want more predictability from equities in the early stages of de-risking, for example, might consider strategies that are actively […]
Defined benefit plan sponsors across the country are looking for ways to reduce risk using tools such as plan design or investment strategy. At Benefits Canada’s DB Investment Forum on Dec. 11, 2015, five consultants discussed trends in changes to plan design and how they relate to investment decisions. Jason Campbell from Eckler, Ken Choi […]
Will there be more employees working abroad on assignment next year? It seems so. More than half (56%) of multinational companies expect to increase their use of short-term assignments in 2015/16, reports a Mercer study. Over the next year or two, companies expect to increase their use of the following: permanent transfers (54%), developmental and […]
For capital accumulation plan (CAP) members, it’s tough trying to save money for retirement. How much should I save? How much is actually enough for a decent retirement income? Will I run out of money in retirement? These are questions plan members ask themselves and try desperately, with the help of plan sponsors, to answer. […]
Worried about saving? You’re not alone.
Though survey results vary, they generally indicate that employers offering retiree benefits are the minority in Canada. For instance, only 16.3% of participating organizations in the 2015 Mercer Plan Design Database offer some kind of retiree benefits. Additionally, the 2015 Sanofi Healthcare Survey of mostly larger employers shows only 35% still offer benefits to new retirees. In another survey, 17% of respondents in the Toronto Region Board of Trade offered extended health coverage, and 13% offered dental benefits to retirees. By 2014/15, these numbers decreased to 16.5% and 11.9%, respectively.