Despite the uncertainty surrounding Britain’s vote to leave the European Union, investors seem to be taking a wait-and-see approach to their holdings in the country. That’s the view from State Street Corp., which has been tracking investor sentiment following last year’s referendum on a quarterly basis. A report released this month shows 63 per cent of […]
Almost half (46 per cent) of employees report they or their colleagues have taken time off after an organizational change, according to new research by Morneau Shepell. Its survey of 1,018 employers and employees across the country found most employee respondents reacted negatively to organizational change: 40 per cent said it adversely impacted their health and well-being […]
While the Pokémon Go app became a worldwide phenomenon last summer and motivated its players to become more active, they quickly lost interest and subsequently couldn’t sustain their increased physical activity, according to a recent study published by the BMJ, a British medical journal. The findings are perhaps a disappointment to those who hoped games […]
Last week, Manulife announced it’s increasing employee coverage for mental-health services to $10,000. The move followed a decision by Starbucks last year to boost mental-health coverage to $5,000. With society putting a great focus on supporting people with mental-health issues, do the moves signal a trend towards greater employer coverage? Prior to the change, Manlife covered up […]
As Canada’s population ages and concerns about retirement income adequacy mount, employers will need to not only reassess their pension and benefits programs but also look at how they can manage changing workforce demographics. The number of older Canadians in the job market continues to increase, according to a recent Statistics Canada labour force survey. […]
When support staff working for British Columbia’s public education system call in sick for up to six consecutive days, they receive notification from a union representative informing them of an imminent call from a health-care management specialist employed by Desjardins Insurance. The process is part of the joint early-intervention service, a program undertaken by the […]
Despite the federal government’s plan to move ahead with reforms to the Canada Pension Plan, a recent survey by Aon Hewitt has found only 35 per cent of employers will be preparing for the changes this year. Only 13 per cent of 250 Canadian employers surveyed in October had already started planning for the CPP reform, […]
Manulife is providing more mental-health support to employees by increasing its annual coverage of mental-health services to $10,000 per person. Previously, employees could claim up to $1,000 each year on professional services provided by licensed practitioners, including mental-health services. Under its redesigned plan, Manulife has separated the coverage for mental-health practitioners and allocated the new […]
As the new year begins, what are the key benefits, pension and investment issues facing plan sponsors in the coming months? For those providing benefits, drug costs are expected to continue to increase at about five to seven per cent annually, says Stephen Frank, senior vice-president of policy at the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association. […]
As Toronto-area commuters dash through Union Station on their way to work or to finish off their Christmas shopping, employees of the agency that runs the trains have been greeting them with some holiday cheer while raising money for a good cause. Every year, a group of employees from Metrolinx, the provincial transportation agency, congregate […]