The union representing 60 employees at Maple Leaf Foods in Port Perry, Ont., has ratified a four-year collective agreement that includes pension and benefits gains. Vision coverage will increase from $280 to $315 in the first year and coverage for paramedical services will increase from $380 to $410 in the first year and to $420 […]
The union representing more than 1,300 employees at General Motors’ assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ont. has ratified a two-year collective agreement that includes pension and benefits gains. On Aug. 3, 2025, employees hired on or after Sept. 17, 2013, and currently participating in the defined contribution pension plan will be enrolled in the Colleges of […]
Canada’s life and health insurers paid out a record $128 billion in health and retirement benefits last year, up from $114 billion in 2022, according to the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association’s annual fact book. “The benefits that life and health insurers provide through workplace plans and individual policies contributed significantly to Canadians’ health […]
Canadian benefits plan sponsors are increasingly seeking to balance providing competitive benefits against plan sustainability issues, said expert panellists during the launch event for the 2024 Benefits Canada Healthcare Survey last week. Andrea Belvedere (pictured right), assistant vice-president of health benefits and solutions at Sun Life, said plan sponsors are starting to ask more questions […]
Canadian health benefits plan members are increasingly feeling financially strained, according to the 2024 Benefits Canada Healthcare Survey — a finding that experts say should be a call to action to employers to include more financial wellness supports in benefits plans. Personal finances has remained plan members’ top stressor for the past two years, with […]
A large majority (80 per cent) of Canadian employers feel it’s extremely (36 per cent) or somewhat challenging (44 per cent) to provide benefits in today’s economic climate, according to the 2024 Benefits Canada Healthcare Survey. However, three-quarters (77 per cent) of plan sponsors indicated their health benefits plan was extremely or very important to […]
The unions representing more than 9,000 Canada Border Services Agency employees have ratified a four-year collective agreement that includes pension and benefits gains. The agreement with, the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Customs and Immigration Union, includes a pensionable $2,500 one-time, lump-sum payment for all employees upon the date of signing. For members […]
There has seen a “huge increase” in mental-health practitioner claims following the coronavirus pandemic, said Sylvana Leclerc, organizational health consultant for integrated health solutions at Sun Life Financial Inc., during a session at Benefits Canada’s 2024 Vancouver Benefits Summit in May. Citing findings from the insurer’s annual Health by Design report, she said in 2022, […]
Nearly half (47 per cent) of Canadians say they’ve been injured in a way that impedes or has impeded them from being fully functional at work, at home or at play, according to a new survey by Ipsos on behalf of the Canadian Athletic Therapists Association. The survey, which polled 1,000 Canadian workers aged 18 and […]
The use of obesity medications among Canadian employer-sponsored benefits plan members has grown substantially, with claims increasing 42 per cent in 2023 and roughly 92 per cent since 2020, according to a new report by Manulife Financial Corp. The report, based on aggregate claims data, found more women are using obesity drugs than men (79 […]