At the beginning of 2020, the OPSEU Pension Trust upped its gold allocation to close to six per cent of its total fund after a comprehensive portfolio assessment. The decision paid off. In an environment of historically low interest rates and coronavirus-related market uncertainty, the commodity’s price skyrocketed to reach an all-time high of US$2,000 […]
Canadian employees’ top concerns are physical health and fitness, work load and work-life balance, ability to retire and mental health, according to a new survey by Mercer Canada. The survey, which polled 1,000 Canadian employees, found lower-wage workers were most worried about their ability to retire, followed by physical health and fitness and mental health. […]
The average solvency ratio of Canadian defined benefit pension plans in Mercer’s database increased five percentage points in the first quarter of 2022, according to a new report by the consultancy. The report, which assessed the performance of 464 pension plans, found as at March 31, 2022, the plans’ average solvency ratio reached 108 per […]
With two of Ontario’s government parties promising to develop portable benefits plans, it’s important to remember that plan sponsors need the freedom to design and price their benefits packages, as well as stability in terms of government processes, says one expert. “Plan sponsors are already delivering programs to a large proportion of the workforce and […]
In Canada, the year-over-year cost increase for claims under a medical plan on a per-person basis is projected to reach 8.6 per cent this year, up from eight per cent in 2021, according to a new report by Mercer Canada. The report, which analyzed responses from 210 insurers across 59 countries, found the year-over-year cost […]
OVERVIEW AGENDA SPEAKERS ACTIVITIES LOCATION POST EVENT COVERAGE Speaker Samantha Cleyn, vice-president, head of eastern Canada, T. Rowe Price Samantha Cleyn is head of eastern Canada for the Americas division of T. Rowe Price, the organization responsible for the firm’s institutional business in North America. She is based in Montreal, Quebec and is a vice-president […]
After navigating the unpredictable markets of the past two decades, some defined benefit pension plan sponsors could be forgiven for wanting to seek out some certainty. But a new threat has emerged in the form of rapidly rising inflation and the possibility of rate increases after decades of persistent lows. The consumer price index increased […]
This month marks the second anniversary of the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, a 24-month span that has had profound effects on the health of benefits plan members and the status and structure of their plans. For drug plans in particular, several trends have come to light — or have accelerated — during the course […]
Office workers used to, well, work in offices. Then the coronavirus pandemic hit. Since it was first declared, entire organizations — from the chief executive officers steering the ships to the administrative assistants below decks — were upended, flinging everyone from the company mothership into their own personal lifeboats. As employers and employees face down […]
Higher investment fees in capital accumulation plans can potentially set an individual’s retirement date back by four years, according to Mercer’s latest retirement readiness barometer. The analysis found a person paying the median retail fee (1.9 per cent) would be retirement ready at age 70. On the other hand, someone paying the median fee available […]