While employers recognize employee benefits are an important part of attracting and retaining talent, seven in 10 (70 per cent) say it’s impossible to offer all of the benefits that employees are currently demanding, according to a new survey by the Harris Poll on behalf of Express Services Inc. The survey, which polled more than […]
The Public Service Alliance of Canada recently filed a policy grievance against the Treasury Board for its management of the transfer of the Public Service Health Care Plan to Canada Life Assurance Co., which has impacted tens of thousands of federal public service workers covered under the plan. In 2023, the federal government implemented two […]
Unifor has filed two applications with the B.C. Labour Relations Board to represent Amazon.com Inc. workers in New Westminster and Delta, B.C. “Workers at Amazon are seeking job security, health and safety and fair wages,” said Lana Payne, the union’s national president, in a press release. The union first announced a drive for Amazon workers in Metro […]
In its 2024 budget on Tuesday, the federal government announced a new working group dedicated to encouraging increased domestic investments by Canadian institutional investors. Former Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz is being tasked to lead an organization that will identify priority investment opportunities in the country for the more than $3 trillion held by […]
Organon Canada’s ‘HER Professional Journey’ initiative is addressing women’s unique health experiences, including fertility, parental leave and menopause, so they can feel supported and empowered in the workplace at every stage of their career. The program, which is led by an employee resource group, helps the organization to further advocate for women and help make […]
Canadian employers have taken important steps forward on a range of diversity, equity and inclusion matters. That work continues, particularly in the context of neurodiversity, which applies to an estimated 15 per cent to 20 per cent of the global population. Neurodiversity is a broad category that includes autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia, Tourette’s syndrome, […]
As I write this column, I’m reflecting on the spectrum of weather I’ve witnessed this past winter. From my office window in southwestern Ontario, I looked out onto snowy rooftops for maybe a week over the last several months. That’s contrasted with a recent trip to Nova Scotia, where a series of winter storms brought […]
While the coronavirus pandemic may be in the rearview mirror for most employers, the Ontario-based Workplace Safety and Insurance Board knows all too well that the shadow pandemic that emerged from the health crisis is still impacting employees in the workplace. At a time when some employers are considering cutting back on mental-health benefits, the […]
While there are multiple opportunities for the use of artificial intelligence in the employee benefits space — including making the claims process more efficient and personalizing the plan member experience — one of the biggest advantages of the technology is the ability to streamline administrative tasks, allowing employees to focus on more value-added work in […]
During Canada’s unprecedented 2023 wildfire season, 6,500 individual fires burned more than 18.4 million hectares of land — and wildland firefighters bore the brunt of it all. “The working conditions are extremely dangerous and they’re getting more dangerous as fires become larger and more intense, and, in many cases, are going through communities,” says Bert […]