After December 2018 wreaked havoc on the markets, ending the year on a sour note for many Canadian defined benefit pension plans, most of the damage was reversed at the beginning of 2019, according to Mercer Canada’s pension health index. The index, which represents the solvency ratio of a hypothetical plan, rose from 102 per […]
Canadian defined benefit pension plans’ solvency position rose in the first quarter of 2019, according to two new pension indexes. Representing the solvency ratio of a hypothetical plan, Mercer Canada’s index sat at 106 per cent on March 31, up from 102 per cent at the start of the year. The median solvency ratio of Mercer clients’ pension plans […]
The Association of Canadian Pension Management has mixed feelings about the federal government’s proposed methods for enhancing retirement security in the wake of the high-profile Sears Canada Inc. bankruptcy last year. During an ACPM webinar last week, Todd Saulnier, the chair of ACPM’s national policy committee and a principal at Mercer, said some of the federal government’s options […]
It’s no surprise that investors can’t rely on past performance when picking a manager for tomorrow, but it remains a key driver for many investment decisions, according to a new paper by Mercer. “Despite the ever-present health warning that ‘past performance is no guide to future performance,’ there are plenty of theories in behavioural finance […]
More than three-quarters (79 per cent) of executives said they expect contingent and freelance workers to substantially replace full-time employees in the coming years, according to Mercer’s latest survey on global talent trends. While predictions vary by industry, the survey found the financial services industry is expected to have a workforce that’s 80 per cent freelance in […]
While estimating the longevity of a pension plan’s membership isn’t a new concept, developments in using big data and new tools in predictive modelling could go a long way to making predictions more accurate. “Traditionally, most benefit plans were using standard mortality tables and not really differentiating how much longevity risk they had,” says Manuel […]
The Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities has released an update on pension plans using leverage. “What makes it of particular interest to pension regulators now, is that it is being used more commonly and more intensively by pension plans, principally as a component of investment strategies aimed at achieving better asset-liability matching (through higher […]
The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions’ office of the chief actuary has appointed Assia Billig as chief actuary, effective April 15, 2019. She will succeed Jean-Claude Ménard, who will retire in mid-April after 20 years as chief actuary. Billig has worked in the office of the chief actuary for more than a decade, specializing in actuarial […]
Three-quarters (77 per cent) of Canadian executives predict significant disruption in human resources in the next three years, according to Mercer’s 2019 global talent trends study. The study, which polled more than 7,300 senior business executives, HR leaders and employees from 16 countries, found this is higher than expectations from the U.S. (65 per cent) […]
Though the term ‘corporate social responsibility’ varies across companies and countries, it’s generally considered to be a form of organizational self-regulation focusing on an employer’s approach to sustainability across a variety of topics, such as environmental efforts, human rights, corporate governance, health and safety and economic development. Unilever’s sustainable living plan sets out ambitious targets […]