Accommodating employees at work who have physical disabilities that challenge them daily may be an obvious step, but employers need to remember that employees with episodic disabilities (both physical and mental) need to be accommodated, too. And it’s not difficult to do. An episodic disability is marked by unpredictable periods and degrees of wellness, explained […]
Reducing healthcare costs is the age-old question that plan sponsors have been seeking the answer to. Are defined contribution (DC) benefits the answer? At the recent Human Resources Professionals Association conference in Toronto, Michael Trowell, assistant vice-president of Comprehensive Benefits Solutions Ltd., gave insight into just where this area of the market is headed because, […]
False medical claims can increase your benefits plan costs—they can also get people arrested. Yesterday, Peel Regional Police arrested six Air Canada employees at Pearson International Airport for an alleged false medical benefits claims scam. Police told 680News more arrests may be made as the investigation continues. Air Canada spokesperson Peter Fitzpatrick confirmed with the […]
For as long as I can remember, employee benefits plan sponsors have been talking about benefits cost management. In the face of double-digit cost increases that have persisted over the last decade—fuelled by such factors as increased utilization, government offloading, the introduction of new, more costly medicines, changing demographics, etc.—the cost management imperative on the […]
Employee health benefits plans in Canada have been adversely impacted to date by a slow uptake of e-health technology across the healthcare industry and inconsistencies in the technology infrastructure across provinces. An effective rollout of electronic health records (EHRs) and related e-health technologies will allow healthcare providers access to the data needed to optimize the […]
Employee health benefits plans in Canada have been adversely impacted to date by a slow uptake of e-health technology across the healthcare industry and inconsistencies in the technology infrastructure across provinces. An effective rollout of electronic health records (EHRs) and related e-health technologies will allow healthcare providers access to the data needed to optimize the […]
Given the past 18 months, it’s no surprise healthcare budgets haven’t increased. Employers are struggling to figure out how to stretch their limited resources to keep their employees healthy and productive. Working Well invited 11 experts to a round-table discussion to share their thoughts on how employers are facing these challenges. More specifically, they discussed […]
In Newfoundland and Labrador, about 40% of the 280 municipalities offer healthcare benefits to their employees, and only 20% offer any type of retirement or pension benefit. Terry Taylor knows this needs to change. He’s the general manager of the Newfoundland & Labrador Municipal Employee Benefits Inc., which is also known as Trio Benefits. “Within […]
As the Canadian economy sluggishly moves past the recent recession, employers will have to quickly pull their heads out of the sand when it comes to the impending demographic crunch. The rapid loss of skilled workers to retirement is a fundamental issue that many employers are still not prepared for. The issue was temporarily swept […]
Aging demographics. The economic boom. The financial meltdown. The economic recovery. Spiralling healthcare costs. Government off-loading. All of the buzzwords of the last five years have come together to create a benefits environment in which caution is the order of the day. Instead of attraction and retention or plan cutbacks, employers are now in a […]