Improving participation and engagement in pension savings is a constant challenge for the retirement industry, but experts point to more insistent and consistent tactics around member behaviour. Derek Messacar, associate professor of applied economics, Memorial University Programs that offer tax deductions on savings in designated accounts have, for a long time now, been contested as […]
An article announcing the finalists of the 2025 Workplace Benefits Awards was the most-read story on BenefitsCanada.com this past week. Here are the top five human resources, benefits, pension and investment stories of the last week: 1. Who are the finalists of the 2025 Workplace Benefits Awards? 2. Employee’s termination following mental-health leave not discriminatory: […]
In its pre-budget submission to the federal government, the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association highlighted variable payment life annuities, automatic features in pension plans, pharmacare and virtual health care as areas that require attention. While the CLHIA said it supports the concept of VPLAs as a decumulation solution for defined contribution plan members, it […]
Since 2008, when the U.S. enacted legislation allowing target-date funds as the default, total assets in these funds have grown from around US$150 billion to $3 trillion, according to Glenn Dial, vice-president of retirement thought leadership and research at American Century Investments, during a session sponsored by CIBC Asset Management Inc. at Benefits Canada’s 2025 […]
Features such as automatic enrolment in 401(k) savings plans are helping U.S. employees become retirement ready, said Mark Iwry, a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a former senior advisor to the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury for national retirement and health policy, during a session at Benefits Canada’s 2024 Defined Contribution Plan […]
More than £50 billion in U.K. pension benefits were at risk of being misplaced in abandoned accounts or scattered across multiple lost pots in 2023, according to a study by the Centre for Economics and Business Research on behalf of PensionBee Ltd. It noted at least 4.8 million U.K. pension pots were considered lost in 2023, […]
The Association of Canadian Pension Management is reiterating its support for fully enabling automatic features in retirement savings plans, including defined contribution pensions, group registered retirement savings plans and group tax-free savings accounts. In a letter to the Ontario government, the association said the province’s employers want to implement automatic features that reduce red tape […]
More than two-fifths (43 per cent) of U.S. defined contribution pension plan sponsors say their plan offers automatic escalation, up from 21 per cent in 2013, according to a new survey by J.P. Morgan Asset Management. The survey, which polled more than 700 employers, found nearly two-thirds (61 per cent) said they take a proactive […]
High inflation and interest rates are having a real impact on people’s finances, according to Benefits Canada‘s 2023 CAP Member Survey, which found 76 per cent of capital accumulation plan members say inflation is negatively impacting their financial situation, while 59 per cent say the same about interest rates. For many people, the day-to-day cost […]
With group retirement plans aimed at helping members avoid risks and achieve their savings goals, defined contribution plan sponsors are uniquely positioned to step up and take a more active role in managing risk, said Christine van Staden, regional vice-president of group customer and national accounts business development at Canada Life, during Benefits Canada‘s 2023 […]