Indigo Books & Music Inc. is the first national employer to pilot the Great-West Life Assurance Co.’s student debt savings program. Employees in the program will receive a matching contribution, up to a maximum, to their retirement savings account within Indigo’s group retirement plan for every payment they make to their Canadian or provincial government student loan. […]
Manulife Financial Corp.’s short-term disability claims related to mental health have decreased since it boosted its benefits to employees last year. In January 2017, Manulife increased its mental-health benefit, from $1,000 to $10,000 per person per year, including coverage for family members. “Really the goal of that was to remove any financial barriers, real or […]
The pension and retirement savings was once again the growth leader in the life and health insurance industry in 2017, according to the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association’s annual fact book. Of the $651 billion held in employer-sponsored pension plans last year, the industry was responsible for managing $152 billion, which is up from […]
The gig economy might not be the new frontier for North America’s workforce after all. From Uber to TaskRabbit to YourMechanic, so-called gig work has been widely seen as ideal for people who want the flexibility and independence that traditional jobs don’t offer. Yet the evidence is growing that over time, they don’t deliver the […]
Among American employees enrolled in an employer-sponsored health plan, just seven per cent pay no deductible, according to a new survey by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans. Among those with single coverage, nearly half (46 per cent) of respondents pay a deductible between $1,000 and $2,999, followed by $500 to $999 (19 per cent), under […]
Almost two-thirds (65 per cent) of American employees said they’d be more productive working from home than in an office setting, according to a new survey by FlexJobs. The survey, which polled more than 3,o00 Americans, found the reasons included fewer distractions (75 per cent), fewer interruptions from colleagues (74 per cent), less commuting stress (71 per cent) […]
Postmedia Network Inc. has told Ottawa Citizen and Ottawa Sun staff that it will lock out union employees starting Monday if they reject or refuse to vote on its final contract offer Sunday. Chris Krygiel, vice president of human resources and labour relations at Postmedia, said in a letter Thursday to staff that a lockout […]
The escalating cost of drugs and benefits plans are among the top priorities for Canadian employers, according to a new survey by Aon. The survey, which polled nearly 200 Canadian plan sponsors about their priorities related to group benefits and their workforces, found rising drug costs, in general, escalating specialty drug prices, in particular, and the increasing cost of extended health are the […]
Canadian participation rates in workplace wellness programs are extremely low, with just 11 per cent of employees participating on a regular basis and 23 per cent participating only occasionally, according to the 2015 Sanofi Canada health-care survey. But one workplace wellness program is reversing this trend. Global health organization Merck Canada Inc. launched its program […]
New regulations in New Brunswick providing paid leave for victims of domestic, intimate partner or sexual violence took effect on Sept. 1. The new regulations allow up to 10 days of leave to be used intermittently or continuously, and up to 16 weeks to be used in one continuous period, of which the first five days will […]