The Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario is encouraging defined contribution pension plan sponsors and administrators to evaluate the use of automatic features within the context of their plans. New guidance posted to the FSRA’s website affirms that the Pension Benefits Act and its regulations don’t prohibit the use of automatic features in defined contribution pension […]
Canadian insurers paid out more than $97 billion in benefits from life and health insurance products in 2020, according to the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association’s annual fact book. The period, which included the first nine months of the coronavirus pandemic, included $420 million paid out for psychology-related claims to support mental health, up 24 […]
Governance-related resolutions are receiving more overall votes from defined contribution pension plan members, but environmental issues are more engaging on a vote-per-measure basis, according to a new survey by two U.K.-based organizations. The study, by asset management firm Legal and General Investment Management Ltd. and fintech company Tumelo, found measures related to all levels of […]
Last year, Benefits Canada hosted its 2020 CAP Member Survey webinar just a few weeks after the World Health Organization declared the global coronavirus pandemic. It was early days and, as uncertain as we all felt, I don’t think anyone expected we’d still be working from home and struggling through the crisis almost a year […]
The past year and a half has been characterized by marked change. The move to remote work, industry layoffs and the desire for more robust support left plan sponsors and consultants rapidly altering the ways they work together. Certain trends, such as virtual care, mental-health support, changing retirement needs and industry consolidation have slowly been […]
For the past 15 years, Benefits Canada’s CAP Member Survey has taken the pulse of capital accumulation plan members’ retirement readiness, their knowledge, confidence and satisfaction in their employer-provided CAPs and how their financial wellness is affecting their physical and mental health. Tracking sentiments through the 2008/09 financial crisis, its subsequent recession and recovery and […]
Indigenous and racialized seniors have less retirement security and higher poverty rates than white seniors in Canada, according to a new report by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Based on data from the 2016 census, the report found Indigenous seniors have an average income of $32,200 and a poverty rate of 21.5 per cent, […]
Receiving peer recognition for an innovative communications strategy was among the reasons the Co-operative Superannuation Society pension plan entered Benefits Canada‘s 2020 Workplace Benefits Awards, according to Nicole Quintal, communications manager for the plan. “Quite a few peers in the industry reached out to us after we won the award and it was great to get […]
Two experienced pension professionals weigh in on the longstanding debate regarding whether pension plans should be investing actively or passively. Blair Richards, chief investment officer at the Halifax Port ILA/HEA pension plan To see why passive investing should be a part of every portfolio — particularly in today’s environment — first consider its traditional benefits: […]
Anyone flipping through a prospectus for an employer’s defined contribution pension plan or group registered retirement savings plan will notice a recurring theme when it comes to statements on investment fees: “Better than retail!” they might as well scream. It’s a familiar refrain from both capital accumulation plan sponsors and providers trumpeting the lower rates […]