An article on the lack of benefits provided by small- and medium-sized employers in Eastern Canada was the most-read story on BenefitsCanada.com over the last week. Here are the five most popular news stories of the week: 1. 80% of SMEs in Eastern Canada don’t provide employee benefits: survey 2. Bank of England intervened in bond market to […]
The first issue of Benefits Canada hit the desks of the country’s human resources, benefits, pension and investment professionals in 1977, four years before I was born. That same year, Canada’s inflation rate was eight per cent, very close to July 2022’s annualized inflation rate of 7.6 per cent. A lot has changed in 45 […]
While defined contribution pension plans currently outnumber defined benefit pension plans, this wasn’t always the case, recalls Bita Jenab, a principal at RetirementWorks Services Inc. DC plans began to gain popularity in the mid-1980s, due to a combination of legislative and economic changes, she adds. “This period marks the introduction of pension accounting rules under […]
Our industry sometimes gets a bad rap for being overly traditional and slow to change. But there’s no question we’ve seen some major shifts in employee benefits over the past 45 years. Three of those shifts will have implications for employers going forward. Greater onus on the individual to save for retirement Over the years, […]
I was a little daunted to write a piece for Benefits Canada’s 45th anniversary issue — it has been almost 15 years since I last penned a column for the magazine and I’m a little out of practice. The assignment seemed straightforward — 500 to 600 words on how benefits have evolved or what’s expected […]
While Canada’s pension system continues to rank well globally, the current economic environment poses particular risks for defined contribution pension plan sponsors and members, according to a new report by the CFA Institute and Mercer. “As DC pension plans continue to make up a greater part of Canadians’ retirement, turbulent markets, soaring inflation and a […]
The vast majority (87 per cent) of 401(k) retirement plans — covering more than 90 per cent of 401(k) plan members — offer employer contributions, according to a report by BrightScope Inc. and the Investment Company Institute. The report, which analyzed 64,000 large private sector 401(k) plans, found employer contributions represented 31 per cent of […]
Defined contribution pension plan members in the U.S. are committed to saving and investing, as only two per cent stopped contributing to their plan in the first half of 2022, according to a report by the Investment Company Institute. The report, based on record-keeper data covering more than 40 million DC plan members, noted one per cent […]
The Pension Investment Association of Canada is providing feedback on the Alberta government’s consultation draft of potential legislative and policy updates for private sector pension laws. While the PIAC doesn’t have specific views on how to calculate the provision for adverse deviation, it’s encouraged Alberta is considering a harmonized approach, wrote Sean Hewitt, chair of […]
Canadian life and health insurers processed nearly $600 million in claims related to mental health in 2021, up 45 per cent since 2020 and 75 per cent since 2019, according to the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association’s annual fact book. “2021 was a year of recovery and insurers have been proud partners helping employers […]