Hub International Ltd. is acquiring Calgary-based Wessex Financial Inc. Wessex Financial is a family and business benefits provider that specializes in association benefit planning, individual member services, critical awareness and financial literacy programs. Read: Hub acquiring Edmonton benefits, retirement consultancy This is the latest of a string of Canadian benefits providers and consulting firms that Hub International […]
The union representing Via Rail Canada Inc. employees has ratified a new agreement that will increase employer contributions for members of the company’s hybrid pension plan. The new two-year contract covers 1,700 employees at Via Rail and removes age and service conditions that determined the employer match percentage for optional contributions made by plan members […]
Amazon workers voted against forming a union at a warehouse in Alabama, handing the online retail giant a decisive victory and cutting off a path labour activists had hoped would lead to similar efforts throughout the company and beyond. After months of aggressive campaigning from both sides, 1,798 warehouse workers ultimately rejected the union, while […]
When a 46-year-old woman was diagnosed in early 2016 with stage-two triple-negative breast cancer, she started planning her return to full-time work at almost the same time she began treatment. “It’s interesting because when we think of return-to-work planning, we think of starting to talk about this toward the end of the treatment phase,” said […]
Diabetes care has tended to focus on achieving adequate glucose levels — but the real goal should be maintaining those levels over time, said Alex Abitbol, endocrinologist and assistant medical director of LMC Healthcare, during Benefits Canada’s 2021 Chronic Disease at Work conference in late February. “Much of the guidelines, much of the discussions amongst […]
The pandemic has taken a dramatic toll on the well-being of Canadians, but one of the most notable trends has been its impact on employees with pre-existing mental-health challenges, said Lanie Schachter-Snipper, registered psychotherapist and national director of outpatient services for EHN Canada, during Benefits Canada’s 2021 Chronic Disease at Work conference in late February. […]
Alzheimer’s and dementia is a growing area of concern for the workplace, with more than half a million Canadians currently living with dementia and the number expected to almost double to more than 900,000 by 2030, said Sharon Cohen, neurologist and medical director of the Toronto Memory Program, during Benefits Canada’s 2021 Chronic Disease at […]
While drug plan costs are increasing for plan sponsors, the causes for these increases may depend on which part of Canada a plan sponsor resides in, says Philippe Laplante, a principal responsible for the group benefits practice in Eckler Ltd.’s Montreal office. Over the past three years in Quebec, the average annual increase of recommended pricing […]
Employers have taken on a larger role in employees’ cancer care in the past few years, but the coronavirus pandemic changed the game even further, said Tim Clark, president of tc Health Consulting Inc., during Benefits Canada’s 2021 Chronic Disease at Work conference in late February. Cancer is now the sixth most expensive disease by […]
Atopic dermatitis affects all areas of patients’ lives, including their work and productivity, said Lyn Guenther, professor of dermatology at Western University, during Benefits Canada’s 2021 Chronic Disease at Work conference in late February. The chronic skin condition, characterized by dry and itchy skin, is growing in prevalence in Canada. About 3.5 per cent of […]