The SickKids Foundation, a Toronto-based charity, is encouraging its employees to skip the elevator and use the stairs, beginning with a wellness challenge piloting the Carrot Rewards’ mobile app. Earlier this year, the organization opened new meeting space on the eighth floor of its office location. Previously, the foundation had only been on the 12th, 13th and […]
According to estimates from the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association, benefits fraud results in the loss of two to 10 per cent of health-care dollars. In terms of preventative measures, Sun Life Financial estimates it saves plan sponsors about $20 million a year, while Great-West Life Assurance Co. suggests its strategies resulted in savings of […]
Carrot Rewards is launching a new peer-to-peer rewards platform to help Canadians encourage one another to get physically active. The wellness app is a platform that leverages behavioural economics and nudge theory to motivate Canadians to make better lifestyle choices. Users connect the app to the built-in pedometer in their smartphones or to an external device […]
As the workplace undergoes rapid transformation amid automation and technological advancements, plan sponsors will need to re-imagine the crossroads between new technology and employee benefits. The issues will be a key focus of panel discussion at Benefits Canada’s 2018 Benefits and Pension Summit on April 16, 2018, at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Toronto. “I think what we’re trying to […]
A large majority (80 per cent) of global employees see a significant opportunity for artificial intelligence in creating a workplace that’s more engaging and empowering, according to a new survey by the Workforce Institute at Kronos Inc. The survey, which polled almost 3,000 employees in Australia, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Mexico, New Zealand and the United States, also found respondents […]
The Great-West Life Assurance Co. is contributing $300,000 to a Toronto-based program that aims to help technology startups working to improve economic productivity and human well-being. The insurance company will contribute the funds over three years to seed-stage program Creative Destruction Lab, part of the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management. The program, which runs over nine months, provides entrepreneurs with […]
Manulife Financial Corp. is partnering with Vitech Systems Group Inc. as a software provider and system integrator for its Canadian group benefits business. Vitech’s insurance administration product, V3, supports group health, dental and life insurance from quote through to claim. “Vitech and V3 will support our focus on providing customers and distribution partners with a […]
It’s a familiar situation: An employee is feeling ill at work but is too busy to leave for a medical appointment. Or perhaps the employee’s child wakes up with a sore throat and needs to see a doctor. New apps and services are emerging to aid in those situations. Video health conferencing and telemedicine allow […]
It’s an exciting time for group benefits in Canada. That’s not a phrase you hear every day, but it’s one that’s coming up more and more often. Terms like “digital health” and “disruption” are new words to the Canadian benefits vernacular. All of a sudden, it seems like a new digital health startup launches every […]
Three of the world’s largest organizations are joining up to form an independent health-care company with the aim of providing U.S. employees and their families with simple, reasonably priced and transparent health care. While the move by Amazon.com Inc., Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and JPMorgan Chase and Co. is in the early stages, its initial focus will be on […]