Are DC plan members capable of making the right decisions, or should the decisions be made for them? There are two camps emerging in Canada’s defined contribution(DC)pension plan community. Which camp you sit in depends on how much faith you have in plan members’ ability to act in their own best interests. The first camp […]
Time to scrap the other 30% rule. The world is full of wacky, outdated laws. In Anniston, Ala., for instance, it’s against the law to wear blue jeans on Noble Street. In Switzerland, it’s illegal to wash your car on Sundays. And in Canada, pension funds can’t elect more than 30% of the directors of […]
What does climate change have to do with your pension plan? Everywhere you look, people are jumping on the green bandwagon. And magazines are no exception.Whether it’s Leonardo DiCaprio posing on an iceberg for the cover of Vanity Fair, Arnold Schwarzenegger grinning on a recent cover of Canadian Business or Al Gore on the cover […]
David Russell, the co-head of responsible investment for the Universities Superannuation Scheme, Britain’s second-largest pension fund talks about how it’s adapting to a changing climate. How can climate change affect pension assets? DR: It is already impacting on our returns. In Europe, we have an emissions trading scheme—which I know is being discussed in Canada […]
Contrary to coverage in the popular media, retirement isn’t a thing of the past. “If you read the headlines…you get the impression we’re seeing huge changes in the retirement patterns of Canadians,” said Malcolm Hamilton, a principal with Mercer Human Resource Consulting, at the CPBI 2007 National Conference in Winnipeg. He cited numerous news headlines […]
The desires of Canadian 30-year-olds have a familiar ring. Work life was quite a different experience back in our parents’ day. In exchange for putting in 30 of their best years with a company, they could expect job security, a decent wage, a generous benefits plan and, of course, a gold watch at retirement. But […]
When deciding on the pension plan that was best for its organization, Merck Frosst focused on value, not just cost. For the Quebec-based pharmaceutical company, that value lays in offering a plan that would attract—and keep—the skilled employees it needs to remain competitive. Unlike many private companies in Canada, it recently chose to maintain its […]
You thought the first one was bad. The sequel’s shaping up to be a doozy. The combination of low interest rates and poor equity returns that drove many defined benefit(DB)pension plans into deficit in recent years is frequently referred to as “the perfect storm.” But while many Canadian pension plan sponsors are well on the […]
Are your pension and benefits plans ready for the immigration wave? Two-thirds. According to the 2006 Census, that’s how much of Canada’s population growth is coming from immigration. By 2030, immigration may account for all of Canada’s population growth. With labour shortages on the horizon, there’s no question that we’ll need every pair of hands […]
Weather. It was a Canadian obsession even before “wind chill factor” and “humidex” became part of our everyday vocabulary. In donut shops, elevators and at water coolers across the nation, you’re likely to overhear Canadians participating in the national pastime: “Cold enough for ya?” “Don’t like the weather? Wait five minutes.” “Yes, but it’s a […]