While the total number of pension plans in B.C. declined to 610 in 2024, overall membership increased by four per cent to 1.34 million members, according to a new report from the BC Financial Services Authority. The decline in the number of plans, from 613 in 2023, was attributed to plan mergers and windups. The […]
The British Columbia government has proposed changes to the province’s Employment Standards Act to allow up to 27 weeks of unpaid leave each year for people facing a “catastrophic” illness or injury. Premier David Eby told a news conference in Victoria that the change would take effect this fall if the bill is passed by his New Democrat […]
A think tank is urging the federal government to abandon plans for a single-payer pharmacare program in the face of tariff-related fiscal uncertainty. Rosalie Wyonch, associate director of research at the C.D. Howe Institute, says in a new report released Thursday that the government should instead look to fill existing gaps in coverage. Ottawa should […]
What’s a plan administrator to do when an individual makes a claim to a pension entitlement that goes back many years after their employment — or in some cases, the employment of a spouse, partner, parent or even grandparent — has ended and available pension records are inconclusive? In a perfect world, when pension inquiries […]
While pay transparency requirements differ across Canada, there are several best practices for employers to ensure equity in the workplace, says Caitlin Hurren, legal counsel at ADP Canada. Provincial pay transparency legislation is gradually being enacted across the country. On Jan. 1, 2026, Ontario-based employers will be required to include total compensation — including base […]
Administering a pension plan involves the accumulation of large amounts of data in the form of documents, filings, reports, emails and letters. At some point, plan administrators who have amassed all this information will ask themselves, “How long do we need to keep these records?” There’s some guidance from pension legislation, as well as pension […]
Changes to British Columbia’s employment standards legislation to no longer allow employers to require sick notes for short-term absences are welcome after a decade of advocacy, says Doctors of BC president Dr. Charlene Lui. She said the group is “very pleased” that the province has moved to eliminate the need for employees to get “routine […]
The British Columbia Financial Services Authority is appointing Tolga Yalkin as chief executive officer and chief statutory officer, effective Jan. 13, 2025. Yalkin succeeds Blair Morrison and will join the BCFSA from his current role leading the regulatory agenda at the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions. Read more People Watch news. “We are thrilled to welcome Tolga […]
Representatives of family doctors in British Columbia say giving physicians paid sick days, vacation coverage, extended health and dental benefits and a pension plan is one way to help attract more doctors to work in the province. The B.C. College of Family Physicians and B.C. Family Doctors published a series of requests for whichever party […]
The Medicus Pension Plan, a defined benefit multi-employer pension plan designed exclusively for incorporated physicians in Canada, reported a funded status of 158 per cent on a going-concern basis and a 115 per cent funded status on a solvency basis as of Jan. 1, 2024. The plan, which launched in May 2023, is designed to […]