Earlier this month, Ontario premier Doug Ford announced in the provincial legislature that he would be axing Bill 148, an assortment of changes to the Employment…
Whether considering age eligibility or policy wording, recent rulings for employees in a pair of Ontario cases are reminders to employers to review their long-term…
For Jonathan Zaid, the benefits of medical cannabis aren’t theoretical or clinical; they’re deeply personal. Diagnosed at age 14 with daily persistent headache, a rare…
The federal government has published its findings from nearly a year of consultations on federal labour standards with Canadian citizens, unions, labour organizations, employers, employer organizations…
An Ontario court is allowing a terminated employee to continue with an action for long-term disability benefits despite signing a document that released such claims. When…
On Oct. 17, 2018, it will be legal to purchase and consume recreational cannabis in Canada. In a recent survey of Mercer’s employer clients and Canadian employees, we found…
Former federal budget watchdog Kevin Page will deliver a blunt message to premiers this week about the costs of a future national pharmacare program: if…
A new report is calling on the Newfoundland and Labrador government to establish presumptive legislation for post-traumatic stress disorder and occupational stress, as well as a law that…
The Ontario Human Rights Tribunal’s recent ruling that it’s unconstitutional for plan sponsors to discontinue benefits for employees after the age of 65 represents a…
There’s an almost even split among plan sponsors on whether to cover medical marijuana in their health benefits plans, according to the 2018 Sanofi Canada…
Quebec has passed its bill eliminating disparities in pension and supplementary group benefits plans. The bill was passed on Tuesday with a number of additions to the province’s…
While a recent court ruling has given some relief to plan sponsors concerned about having an obligation cover medical marijuana under their benefits plans, they…
When Ontario abolished mandatory retirement in 2006, employers could still terminate benefits for workers who turned 65. But in May, the province’s Human Rights Tribunal…
The Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association is tweaking its approach to its compensation disclosure guideline, including a provision to allow advisors to deliver the information…
While a new report shows that introducing a tax on employer-paid health benefits would add $3.8 billion to the federal government’s coffers in the 2018 tax year,…
The Reformulary Group Inc. has formed a cannabis formulary committee that will review evidence for medical marijuana and provide expert opinions and criteria for its…
Canadians spend an average of almost 10 hours each day, excluding sleep time, being sedentary. That counts as risky behaviour given studies that have linked…
Following in the footsteps of other Canadian provinces, Quebec has introduced a bill to amend its labour laws that includes changes to sick leave entitlements. Currently, employees…
Ontario’s move to expand its youth pharmacare program to seniors in 2019 could be a significant win for plan sponsors offering retiree benefits. “A company would…
With fraud prevention month underway, just how big of a problem is the issue for plan sponsors? “As an industry, we estimate that benefits fraud…
A former Atlas Copco Canada Inc. manager sentenced to jail time for his part in a benefits kickback scheme now faces a $20-million bill from his…
According to estimates from the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association, benefits fraud results in the loss of two to 10 per cent of health-care dollars.…
With the impending legalization of marijuana in Canada, what do plan sponsors need to consider? How will the workplace be affected by both recreational and medical…
The issue of benefits changes at some Tim Hortons outlets in response to Ontario’s boost to the minimum wage to $14 per hour is a…
Some 223 Toronto Transit Commission employees have been dismissed or have resigned or retired to avoid dismissal as part of an ongoing investigation into benefits fraud,…