Canada’s retirement system jumped one spot to ninth place in Melbourne Mercer’s annual global pension index. Comparing 37 global retirement systems, the report found the Canadian system showed improvement partly due to the growth in assets under the Canada Pension Plan and the Quebec Pension Plan. It also demonstrated a link between the increasing household debt in developed and […]
It’s an election year and, of course, I have a lot of opinions. But I’ll try to keep my political leanings as neutral as possible and simply lay out the facts. This issue will hit desks days before the federal election. However, as I write these words in mid-September, the main parties are just rolling […]
As the pension industry faces shifting demographics and rising longevity, and both the former and current federal governments have taken opposite positions on changing the retirement age, the issue is still up for debate. Carly Wybrow, spokesperson for the Canadian Institute of Actuaries When the Canada Pension Plan and Quebec Pension Plan were established in […]
Imagine a scenario where an employee can’t afford to opt into their company’s defined contribution pension plan because of debt. Regardless of whether it’s a mortgage, student loan or credit card debt, the employee has more urgent short-term priorities, so saving for retirement is being pushed to the back-burner. How can employers ensure they’re talking […]
An organization that leverages its more experienced workforce — employees aged 50 years and older — will be well-positioned for the future of work, according to a new report by Mercer. The importance of being “age-ready” is underscored for both businesses and economies, because of a rapidly aging labour force coupled with an uncertain global […]
As the federal Conservative Party finally introduced its election platform last week, it included a number of provisions around pension plan solvency and retirement security. If elected, the party said it will mandate that all federally regulated companies report on the solvency of their pension funds. “This will give seniors the confidence that their hard-earned […]
While group retirement compliance is a legal requirement in the U.S., Canadian plan sponsors only have a set of guidelines and best practices to follow. These are in place to help plan sponsors maintain fiduciary responsibility by keeping the interest of the plan member at the forefront of decisions regarding their group retirement plan. One […]
Most (80 per cent) Canadians said they’d rather have an improved pension, or any pension, than a higher salary, according to new research by the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan. The survey of 2,500 Canadians found more (75 per cent) respondents are worried about being able to save enough for retirement than are primarily concerned over […]
General Electric Co. is freezing its U.S. defined benefit pension plan for about 20,000 employees with salaried benefits, reducing its pension deficit by between US$5 million and US$8 million. The affected employees will cease accruing additional benefits or make employee contributions after Jan. 1, 2021, but benefits accrued until Dec. 31, 2020 will be unaffected. As of the […]
Hub International Ltd. is acquiring ProCorp Financial Inc., an Ottawa-based boutique benefits and retirement consulting firm. Hugh Doyle, president of ProCorp Financial, will join Hub Ontario and report to Matt Lievers, president of employee benefits and retirement at Hub Ontario. “We are thrilled to welcome Hugh and the ProCorp Financial team to Hub,” said Gregory Belton, executive chairman of Hub Ontario. “ProCorp […]