More than 200 employees in a defined contribution pension plan at Cape Breton University have joined the Nova Scotia Public Service Superannuation Plan, a defined benefit scheme for public sector workers in that province. The employees who joined the plan included those in management roles, administrative support staff represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees and a […]
More employers should be considering offering group decumulation options to employees, the Association of Canadian Pension Management argues in a new report. While individual options such as annuities, life income funds and registered retirement income funds allow members to maximize their investment choice and enjoy a good amount of flexibility in retirement, they often come […]
The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan saw a 4.2 per cent rate of return in 2016, which was down 8.8 percentage points from 13 per cent in 2015. “We’re actually pretty happy about the return,” Bjarne Graven Larsen, the plan’s executive vice-president and chief investment officer, said on Wednesday during a press conference to announce the results. […]
In the 2017 budget released last week, the federal government said it’s aiming to lower pharmaceutical prices and improve access to prescription medications through significant investments in a variety of health-care agencies. The government has committed $140.3 million over five years, starting in 2017-2018, to Health Canada, the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board and the Canadian Agency for […]
Three major pension funds have made significant investments in property and casualty insurance companies in the past six months. What do the transactions suggest about pension plans’ interest in the insurance sector? It’s quite common for “mammoth” pension funds to invest in property and casualty insurers, says Joel Baker, president and chief executive officer of MSA […]
Toronto city councillors are asking questions after the municipality’s auditor general raised red flags about several questionable benefits claims, including the case of an employee who submitted claims for 66 pairs of orthotics and orthopedic shoes between 2013 and 2015. “We’re supposed to believe that a child needed 66 pairs of orthotics in a year?” asked Coun. […]
Among the changes announced by the federal government in its budget yesterday is the cancellation of the Canada savings bond program, a savings vehicle many employers have long included as a payroll deduction option for their employees. The program, which dates back to 1946 and peaked in the late 1980s at nearly $55 billion of federal market debt, has […]
Employee engagement in Canada was “stable to improving” in 2016, says Todd Mathers, a partner in the talent, rewards and performance business at Aon Hewitt Canada. New research from the consultancy found engagement levels increased one percentage point, from 69 per cent in 2015 to 70 per cent last year. Globally, the survey showed a […]
Some see it as an eternal struggle: the goodhearted doctor championing the best treatments, no matter the cost, while doing battle against the tightfisted insurance company denying claims for expensive but life-saving medications. But when you get down to it, their goals often dovetail: the best care for patients at affordable prices. After all, even […]
Earlier this month, about 20 teachers marched in front of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan offices to protest their plan’s investments in fossil fuel assets, particularly what they believed to be a stake in the controversial Kinder Morgan pipeline in Alberta and British Columbia. “We sometimes hear from members about particular concerns they have, and in this case […]