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© Copyright 2000 Rogers Media. The following article first appeared in the July 2001 edition of
BENEFITS CANADA magazine.
INSIGHTS
Contrarian views, news and international intrigue
By Deanna Rosolen
Men versus women: The gender divide
In the battle of the sexes, it appears that women are winning on the health front. In Health Canada's
quarterly Health Reports, a study entitled "The health divide: How the sexes differ" says women take
better care of themselves.
The study reports that women are likely to make healthier food choices, take vitamins and maintain their
weight. Men, however, are more active. And, while men experience less stress, disability and illness than
women, they don't live longer.
So how do these health trends translate in the workplace? Neil MacEachern, who has 15 years of experience
in human resources in the mining industry and is now director of human resources, Cape Breton District
Health Authority in Sydney, N.S., says "the male issues are more physically health related, as opposed to
[women] dealing with outside [work] issues."
Comparing both industries, he says some health issues may be unique to work environment and gender. For
instance, among the miners, MacEachern dealt largely with smoking cessation, and poor diet-, depression-
and alcohol-related illnesses. In the healthcare environment, where the majority of employees are women and
the average age is about 46, he's addressing issues such as menopause and eldercare.
Keith Mark, human resources specialist at Stelco Hilton Works in Hamilton, Ont., however, says he hasn't
noticed differences among the sexes, especially in the company's health benefits plan. "Females don't go to
the dentist anymore than males do or end up in hospital [more]."
But Ed Buffett notes that worksite health promotion programs are largely attended by women. Buffett, who is
chairman and CEO of wellness company Buffett Taylor & Associates in Whitby, Ont., says "that macho
image is still alive and well, unfortunately. I think that's to some extent a cultural issue that is
particularly valid for older males."
Buffett explains that this is perhaps because in the 1950s and 1960s, health education was limited, whereas
today more information has "brought with it a greater openness."
When it comes to health information, says Wally Thompson, assistant vice-president marketing and
communications, Liberty Health in Markham, Ont., women want facts and details. But, he adds, targeting
women differently than men will only alienate one of the audiences.
Buffett suggests finding "health champions" in the workplace to promote programs. The idea is to attract
more participants, especially males, by using people who exemplify the healthy lifestyle you want to
promote. --Deanna Rosolen
PLANNER
CAPSA'S DRAFT POLICY
The Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities (CAPSA) has released its draft policy,
Pension Governance Guideline and Implementation Tool: Draft for Comment. CAPSA is accepting feedback
until July 25. Visit: www.benefitscanada.com/capsaguid.pdf.
JOINT FORUM'S CAPS REPORT
Interested parties have until July 31, 2001 to submit comments on the Proposed Regulatory Principles for
Capital Accumulation Plans. The document is available at: www.benefitscanada.com/regprinciples.pdf.
CAPSA'S REPORT ON COMMUNICATING ELECTRONICALLY
The Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities (CAPSA) has drawn up a set of proposed
guidelines to deal with electronic communication between plan administrators and members. The complete
document is available at: www.benefitscanada.com/capsacomm.pdf.
Riding the Waves of an Uncertain Market
Canadian Investment Institute Conference
July 23 to 25, 2001
Delta St. John's Hotel and Conference Centre
St. John's, Newfoundland
Call (262) 786-6710, ext. 8257 for details.
Human Resources Summit 2001
July 30 to August 1, 2001
Sheraton Centre
Toronto
Call (800) 941-9403 for details.
Containing the Cost of your Health Benefits Plan
August 27 to 29, 2001
The Grand Hotel & Suites
Toronto
Call (800) 941-9403 for details or visit www.iir-canada.com.
Q & A
Ted Cadsby, president and CEO, CIBC Securities in Toronto has written a book, entitled The 10 Biggest
Investment Mistakes Canadians Make and How to Avoid Them. He spoke with benefits canada about the most
common pitfalls investors make today.
Which mistakes outlined in your book are the most common?
Misunderstanding risk, overestimating active management, succumbing to home bias, timing the market and
overusing tactical asset allocation. For example, most investors tend to define risk in emotional terms,
when often, the emotional elements are the least important for investors who want to maximize their
returns. Even the savviest investors are still vulnerable to their psychology.
What types of behavioural issues have you seen over the past year?
People tend to see the stock market as [being] a lot riskier now because they don't really think about risk
until the market goes down. But the stock market isn't any riskier today than it was before the early
spring of 2000 just before the market peaked. It's just that people's emotions and perceptions guide them
to assessing risk in a different and often illogical way. A lot of investors who have sat on the sidelines
in anticipation of what they think are going to be better times ahead, have actually missed out on a lot of
the market's recovery.
Can money managers use behavioural finance to their advantage?
Where there is disagreement, they can choose stocks on the basis that they are undervalued for behavioural
conditions. For example, I decide that a particular stock is worth more than it is trading at because the
psychology of investors is driving its price down and by using that strategy I can beat the market. But
everyone agrees that behavioural finance is used to become a better investor.
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