One of the more interesting parts of the federal budget put out by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty in May was the proposal that budget surpluses should be used to help top-off the coffers of the Canada Pension Plan(CPP). But with any proposal out of Ottawa, there are differing opinions on what it could mean for […]
Plan sponsors and plan members alike are speaking out about the future of healthcare. Three different surveys recently weighed in on the private/public healthcare debate. The first is the 2006 Mercer Survey, which showed that 60% of Canadian companies have not yet reviewed the terms of their employee benefit plans and their contractual obligations. And […]
© Copyright 2006 Rogers Publishing Ltd. The following article first appeared in the July 2006 edition of BENEFITS CANADA magazine. Every vote counts Large pension plans have a lot of clout when they cast their proxy votes. But change should not be at the expense of the bottom line. By Joel Kranc “Greed is […]
With plans for a major restructuring, Nortel Networks is also planning to overhaul its pension plans. After announcing it would reduce about 1,100 North American positions, Nortel also said it would introduce a Capital Accumulation Plan for all current and future employees beginning Jan. 1, 2008. Those employees who are already in a defined contribution […]
© Copyright 2006 Rogers Publishing Ltd. The following article first appeared in the June 2006 edition of BENEFITS CANADA magazine. Frontlines: Flaherty’s fixer-upper Yes, pensions were in the budget. What now? By Joel Kranc The first Tory budget in over a dozen years was an attempt to be all things to all people, even […]
© Copyright 2006 Rogers Publishing Ltd. The following article first appeared in the June 2006 edition of BENEFITS CANADA magazine. Industry Q&A: Facing reality Canada’s chief regulator of defined benefit pension plans says people must start facing reality when it comes to pension issues. By Joel Kranc Nicholas Le Pan, Superintendent, Office of the […]
Everybody’s getting on the pension guideline bandwagon. Earlier this spring, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development(OECD)published a set of guidelines for pension fund asset management. Key among them are the establishment of a “rigorous process by which investment activities are carried out,” a “written statement and investment policy,” a “strategic asset allocation strategy for […]
© Copyright 2006 Rogers Publishing Ltd. The following article first appeared in the May 2006 edition of BENEFITS CANADA magazine. Educate then negotiate The key to a solid relationship with union members is to keep them informed and educated about their pension and benefits plans. By Joel Kranc Strikes. Picket lines. Lockouts. It’s hard […]
Despite recent overtures of compromise on the issue of a single securities regulator, the provinces are still a long way from consensus. Within the past month, two of the key securities regulators in Canada, namely Alberta and British Columbia, have been fairly outspoken about their opinions, with B.C. backtracking on a previous stance. “The debate […]
BC: What should the new government do about pension sustainability? Hargrove: I agree with the Governor of the Bank of Canada, David Dodge, who says we have to strengthen defined benefit pension plans. And the way to do that is to bring in a pension benefit guaranty fund that the government would put some money […]