PepsiCo Canada is baking flexibility into its retirement savings benefits to support employees’ financial security amid the rising cost of living. To help employees reach their retirement savings goal, the food and beverage company is matching employees’ bonuses up to 3.5 per cent, with the employer contribution automatically directed into their defined contribution pension plan. […]
The Independent Electricity System Operator’s pension plan is in the midst of a comeback from a period of heightened post-coronavirus pandemic volatility, with diversification as the key to its investment roadmap, says Jeannette Briggs, the organization’s director of corporate finance who served as chair of its pension management committee from 2021 to 2023. After conducting […]
While real assets are largely absent among the investment options offered by Canadian defined contribution pension plans, they can offer significant long-term benefits to plan members, said Andrew Knox, managing director of Franklin Templeton Investments’ global real assets fund, during a session at Benefits Canada’s 2024 DC Plan Summit in February. “[Defined contribution] investors in […]
During a panel discussion at Benefits Canada’s 2024 Defined Contribution Plan Summit in February, three defined contribution plan sponsors shared their respective decumulation journeys and their thoughts on where the DC plan sector is in terms of effectively supporting this particular phase of plan members’ lives. At ATCO Ltd., roughly 5,500 employees are enrolled across […]
The recent pressure put on Canadian pensions plans from private managers and governments to re-discover an investment home bias has been met with little enthusiasm, despite special interest by both federal and provincial governments to potentially tap pension fund capital for infrastructure given that current expenditure eats up a large share of the budget. Infrastructure […]
The average Canadian defined benefit pension plan posted a median return of 3.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2024, according to a new report by RBC Investor Services. The report, which tracks performance and asset allocation across Canadian DB plans, credited the positive investment return to the strong performance of equities. Read: Average […]
The union representing more than 600 employees at GreenShield Canada in Toronto and Windsor, Ont. has ratified a three-year collective agreement that includes pension and benefits gains, ending a strike that began on March 1. The agreement includes a $1.50 increase to the defined benefit pension plan for each year, bringing employees from a $71 […]
The funded ratio of U.S. corporate defined benefit pension plans declined to 98.5 per cent in fiscal 2023 from 99.4 per cent in 2022, according to a new report by Milliman Inc. The report, which reviews the financial disclosures of the 100 largest U.S. public corporate DB plans, found their average return on investments was […]
An Ontario Superior Court ruling that allowed IBM Canada Ltd. to retrospectively rectify drafting errors that created unintended additional pension benefits for employees on disability leave augurs well for plan sponsors seeking similar relief going forward. “The case clarifies that there is a specific test for rectification of pension plans and other unilateral instruments, which […]
The Workplace Insurance and Safety Employees Trust generated a net return of 7.9 per cent in 2023, with net assets reaching $4 billion, up from $3.8 billion in 2022, according to its latest report. In a press release, Christopher Brown, WISE Trust’s chief executive officer, said the results are a testament to its partnership with […]