A whole new regulatory environment is taking shape for banks and near-bank financial institutions. The new liquidity and risk management rules, which came into force January 2013 under Basel III, will have a collateral effect on clients and their counterparties.
Mental health problems and illnesses have a $50-billion impact on Canada’s economy each year, and 30% of short term and long term disability claims are associated with mental health issues. It’s hoped that Wednesday morning’s release of the long-awaited National Standard of Canada Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace will start to help improve those numbers.
In considering who in a corporation might be ideally positioned to champion the cause of workplace diversity, most people would think of a CEO or HR executive. Few would consider an in-house lawyer.
Fewer disability claims and a speedy return-to-work schedule for employees who are getting help with mental health issues—employers want these to be a reality. But how do they make it so? While there’s no shortage of resources available to employers on how to create a workplace that is healthy for mind and body, the problem—despite good intentions—lies in actually taking action.
Sonia Mak, a partner with Borden Ladner Gervais, LLP, identifies key considerations for administrators of pension and benefits plans that help to evaluate potential outsourcing partners. The weight each point carries will vary with the nature of the mandate and the expectations of the administrator.
Some employers are opting to automatically enroll employees in workplace retirement plans and to increase contribution rates in the same way. If only strong member engagement in these plans was so automatic.
When global HR consulting firm Mercer decided in November 2012 to transfer much of its Canadian pension and group benefits outsourcing business to competitor Morneau Shepell, it surprised many industry watchers. It also got them thinking. What prompts one consulting firm to invest in outsourcing and another to focus elsewhere? Bill Morneau, executive chairman of […]
A man is hit by a car. Passersby gather round. He’s not bleeding; they decide he’s fine. He’s not unconscious, but he’s not getting up. They decide he likes attention—or he’s lazy. They don’t have time for this. The man is left on the ground, abandoned.
When Claude Lamoureux first started at the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan in 1990, the organization had just hired Mercer’s Malcolm Hamilton to be the board’s actuary. “The first week I was there, he was scheduled to give an introductory talk. I thought I would get caught up on my reading during this boring actuary’s presentation,” he recalls. “After the first few minutes, I thought, Wow, this guy isn’t a traditional consultant. We’re going to have a lot of fun together.”
"Engage, engage, engage” is an apt mantra for the capital accumulation plan (CAP) industry. With disappointing levels of employee engagement in Canadian retirement savings plans, plan sponsors continue to search for ways that inspire employees to save enough for retirement. One potential solution is automatic enrollment with automatic escalation—features that some believe could boost participation rates, particularly among younger workers, and address the engagement issue, too.