What seemed a bump in road in 2002 has now become a frighteningly deep hole for plan sponsors. At the same time, it is shedding a light on just how few people have pension coverage in Canada. As GM’s pension deficit hovered in the news, two provincial finance ministers took the floor at the 8th […]
Other Brieflies this week:| MON | TUE | WED | THU | FRI | General Motors of Canada Ltd. wants financial help from both the federal and Ontario governments to help pay for pension and retiree healthcare costs—which the company says, are crippling its competitiveness. David Paterson, GM Canada’s vice-president of corporate and environmental affairs, […]
The report and recommendations of the Ontario Expert Commission on Pensions were released November 20, 2008. The Commission’s mandate, while not explicitly stated as such, was to save defined benefit (DB) plans in Ontario. If we are honest with ourselves, that battle has already been lost for many corporate plans, or single employer pension plans […]
Leo de Bever has moved from Victorian Funds Management Corporation in Melbourne, Australia, to become the new CEO with Alberta Investment Management Corporation in Edmonton. De Bever discusses his new position, the global pension industry and leaving the land down under for colder climates. What will be your main priority as chief executive officer of […]
Other Brieflies this week:| MON | TUE | WED | THU | FRI | According to a study released by Statistics Canada, the average weekly earning of employees was $788.71 in March, up 0.3% from February and 3.2% from a year earlier. Earnings rose the most in the health and social assistance sector with a […]
Alberta Investment Management Corp. (AIMCo) plans to invest more in private equity, infrastructure assets and hedge funds in an effort to boost returns. “In recent years, returns on traditional interest-bearing investments, such as bonds and money market funds, have fallen,” said AIMCo chairman Charles Baillie, in a speech to the Calgary Chamber of Commerce Thursday. […]
Created in late 2006, the Ontario Expert Commission on Pensions is scheduled to submit its report this summer. Benefits Canada sat down with the head of the commission to talk about the challenges and surprises of the past year, the toughest issues to solve and the next steps. What was your initial reaction when you […]
A new Index measures Canadians’ preparedness for retirement. What do the results mean for pension plan sponsors? Significant demographic, economic and social forces are converging to fundamentally change the nature of retirement in Canada. People are living longer, retiring earlier and leading more active lifestyles than ever before. On top of all of this is […]
There are unique challenges when it comes to pension plans in Canada and plan sponsors will face many more in the future, said participants at the sixth annual Canada Cup of Investment Management in Toronto earlier today. John Poos, Nortel Networks’ director of global pensions said the recent proposed changes in Canadian accounting rules—where pension […]
When Stephen Harper’s minority government took over in Ottawa early last year, 72% of federally regulated defined benefit(DB)plans had a solvency deficit as of June 2005, according to the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions. Private-sector plans faced large shortfalls of their own. On the first anniversary of the Conservative government, it’s clear there […]