The Association of Canadian Pension Management and the Pension Investment Association of Canada have sent the federal government their wish lists for actions to help federally regulated pension plans deal with the fallout of the coronavirus, with a focus on measures to help with cash flow, liquidity and a call for broader solvency reform. As […]
Financial hardship is hitting employers across Canada and they’re starting to make difficult choices around cost-cutting measures within their businesses. “Some plan sponsors may be considering changes to their plan design to address these cost concerns during these turbulent times,” said Jana Steele, partner and department chair of the pension and benefits team at Osler, Hoskin […]
An arbitrator has ruled in favour of the Winnipeg Police Association in its dispute with the City of Winnipeg over the police pension plan. The association filed the grievance in November 2019 after the City attempted to make alterations to the defined benefit pension plan. The changes included increasing employee contributions from eight per cent to 11.5 […]
Canada’s defined benefit plans have had a rough quarter. According to Aon’s median solvency ratio, DB plans fell to an average solvency of 89.1 per cent at the end of the first quarter, from 102.5 per cent at the end 2019. Mercer’s pension health index also dropped, from 112 per cent at the end of […]
In the midst of an unusual or unsettling situation, such as the coronavirus pandemic, pension plan sponsors should remember that both defined benefit and capital accumulation plan arrangements are intended to be managed for the long term. The negative impact of the coronavirus on global economies and on businesses is a concern, particularly with respect to […]
The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions is introducing some measures to help federally regulated private defined benefit pension plans get through the difficult times caused by the coronavirus. Particularly, the regulator is temporarily freezing portability transfers and annuity purchases. In both cases, plan sponsors can write to the OSFI to for consent to […]
Recommendations from two provincially appointed special mediators have failed to quell the labour dispute between Federated Co-operatives Ltd. and the union representing its refinery employees. On Sunday, Unifor Local 594 said it filed an unfair labour practice complaint with the Saskatchewan Labour Board in early March, alleging that Co-op undertook a “concerted campaign of psychological attacks on union […]
Canadians, like many around the world, have watched from the sidelines as interest rates have plummeted and the markets have dropped significantly over the past couple of weeks, with a devastating toll on both personal retirement savings and employer-sponsored pension and other retirement savings plans. Existing industry concerns about the adequacy of retirement savings in […]
With asset deterioration due to drops in equity markets and a decrease in long-term government bond yields causing an increase in solvency liabilities, pension funds are in a tough position. A Canadian defined benefit solvency funding calculation assumes some plan members will elect to take a commuted-value lump sum, while other members will elect to […]
While some may still dream of an early retirement, the world where freedom 55 seemed like a genuine possibility is no longer the world we live in today. However, in some ways, the retirement systems established by Canada’s government don’t reflect the current reality — in order to achieve a financially healthy retirement, Canadians will need to […]