The union representing 70 employees at Northern Transformer in Vaughan, Ont. has ratified a four-year collective agreement that includes pension and benefits gains. The agreement introduces a group registered retirement savings plan and a deferred profit-sharing plan in which the company will provide a matching contribution of three per cent of regular earnings, capped at […]
Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has completed its acquisition of BCHR Holdings — also known as Buck — for US$660 million. Through the agreement, Gallagher will expand its retirement, benefits and human resources consulting services in Canada, the U.S. and the U.K., according to a press release. Buck’s team of 2,300 employees will operate under the direction […]
The median 401(k) account balance for women is 65 per cent lower compared to men, according to a new survey by T. Rowe Price. The survey, which polled roughly 3,900 401(k) plan members and more than 1,100 retirees, found the median annual contribution for women was 43 per cent less than men. It also found women are […]
The union representing around 150 employees at West Fraser Timber in Fort Frances, Ont. has ratified a four-year collective agreement that includes multiple benefits gains. The new contract, which is retroactive to Aug. 1, 2022, includes a new maternity leave top-up program that provides new mothers with additional financial support. During the first eight weeks […]
Carefor Health & Community Services has joined the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan. The Ottawa-based health-care and community support charity previously sponsored its own defined benefit pension plan, which has now merged with the HOOPP. More than 620 employers participate in the HOOPP, which typically adds 20 to 25 new employers every year. Read: HOOPP approves […]
The majority (81 per cent) of U.S. public sector employees worry whether they’ll have enough money to last them through retirement, according to a new survey by MissionSquare Research Institute. The annual survey, conducted alongside the International Public Management Association for Human Resources and the National Association of State Personnel Executives, also found just 41 per […]
More than half (59 per cent) of generation Z workers and a third (31 per cent) of millennials say they have yet to start saving for retirement, according to a new survey by IG Wealth Management. The survey, which polled more than 1,500 Canadian workers, found 63 per cent of respondents believe $1 million in […]
A new U.S. law that aims to strengthen retirement support for workers holds valuable lessons for Canada’s retirement system, says one pension consultant. The Secure 2.0 Act of 2022, which was signed into law in December, contains several provisions to enhance the U.S. retirement system and boost retirement savings, including a requirement for plan sponsors to […]
Retiree spending of public and private sector pension benefits generated US$1.3 trillion in total economic output in the U.S. in 2020, supporting nearly 6.8 million jobs during the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report by the National Institute on Retirement Security. It also found $612.6 billion in pension benefits were paid […]
Last October, Ontario’s pay equity office reported Canadian women received an average of 18 per cent less retirement income than men in 2020, which is three per cent higher than the gap observed in 1976, the earliest year for which data is available. How has progress moved backwards in the past 44 years, even though women are […]