Group benefits are an invaluable tool most companies harness to attract and retain the best talent. For employees, they characterize a noble intent of care, compassion and protection. For employers, they can embody inherent risk. “Benefits are a form of compensation. And most benefit plans do not give employers any control of that compensation. Fraud […]
Benefits Canada honoured seven winners of the 2017 Workplace Benefits Awards at an event in Toronto on Thursday. In a room at the Arcadian Court, 75 leaders in the benefits, pension and investment industry gathered to see awards presented across seven different categories. The winning employers are examples of the excellent work underway to improve employee’s physical, mental […]
How does an employer go about creating a mental-health strategy? In the case of Ontario’s Workplace Safety & Insurance Board, it brought its own employees into the conversation. Speaking during an event hosted by Manulife Financial Corp. in Toronto on Thurday, Lilian Riad-Allen, a senior consultant for the mental health and wellness program at the […]
Desjardins Insurance has named André Langlois its senior executive vice-president of life and health insurance. In the role, Langlois will lead operations across the company’s business lines, including individual, group and business and creditor and direct insurance, as well as group retirement savings. Langlois has been with Desjardins for almost 30 years. Read: Michael Doughty […]
Mercer is introducing outsourced governance for employers with defined contribution pension plans. The offering, Mercer Future Wise, will delegate employers’ plan governance to a team at Mercer, providing access to investment managers, competitive fees and governance and oversight, according to a press release. It will also provide employers with insight into their plan members’ engagement […]
Benefits Canada is pleased to announce the list of finalists for the 2017 Workplace Benefits Awards. The finalists will find out who won at a luncheon on Oct. 12 at the Arcadian Court in Toronto. Buy your ticket today to be among the first to hear which companies have come out on top in the following categories. […]
The investigation into benefits fraud at the Toronto Transit Commission has taken yet another turn as police announce new charges involving claims submitted to the City of Toronto. On Thursday, Toronto police announced new charges against Adam Smith, the 46-year-old owner of orthotics store Healthy Fit Inc. The new charges, which include two counts of fraud […]
In 1977, when Benefits Canada published its first group benefits providers report, the industry was much more crowded. The big companies on the scene today weren’t yet the massive entities that now dominate the market. More U.S. insurers had their hats in the ring. And the big players had yet to acquire some of the […]
Shareholders have approved the proposed merger between Standard Life and Aberdeen Asset Management Inc. At Standard Life’s general meeting on Monday, 98.6 per cent of shareholders voted in favour of the all-share merger announced in March 2017. The merged investment firm, which will rebrand as Standard Life Aberdeen, will have its headquarters in Scotland. “Our […]
With recreational marijuana set to become legal in Canada next summer, employers have limited time to prepare for the coming changes, attendees at a presentation sponsored by Torys LLP in Toronto heard on Wednesday. The Cannabis Act, introduced in the House of Commons in April, had its second reading earlier in June as the government looks to […]