Ontario and Alberta are making changes to provincial employment legislation to protect workers who are affected by the coronavirus. In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford and Minister of Labour Monte McNaughton proposed amendments to the Employment Standards Act that would provide job-protected leave to employees who are in isolation or quarantine, as well as to those […]
With coronavirus fears escalating, employers are adjusting their leave policies while labour groups are urging governments to reconsider paid leave provisions. This week, Walmart Inc. introduced an emergency leave policy for its U.S. employees. The retailer said hourly staff who work in a store, club, office or distribution centre will receive up to two weeks […]
Since the point of an editorial is to create a discussion on the trends and issues affecting our industry, I was glad to see my latest — in the January/February issue — sparked a good debate. The print edition of Benefits Canada doesn’t have a Letters to the Editor section, so I’m compiling all the […]
The federal government is rolling out a $1 billion funding package to help provincial health-care systems cope with the increasing number of new coronavirus cases and to help Canadian workers who are forced to isolate themselves. The Liberals are loosening restrictions on employment insurance payments for people who are off work due to illness by […]
Canada Life is working with Dialogue Technologies Inc. to make virtual health care a standard benefit for its group benefits plans with up to 400 plan members. When the change takes effect this summer, employees who are covered by the insurer’s group benefits plans will have access to Dialogue’s bilingual virtual health-care platform through a mobile app or […]
Scotiabank is expanding its maternity and parental leave top-up pay for Canadian employees and providing access to a virtual health-care program. Eligible employees will receive six weeks of parental leave top-up pay at 100 per cent of salary, which supplements employment insurance maternity and parental benefits. As such, birth mothers will receive 12 weeks of […]
Canada Life is entering into an agreement with League Inc. to offer the health technology company’s digital benefits platform alongside its group services. The partnership aims to offer employers more choice and simplify how they administer and deliver their benefits plans, according to a press release. “We are always looking for new and innovative ways to […]
The majority (90 per cent) of Canadian employers now offer at least one non-insurance benefit such as paid time off, employee assistance programs or flexible working, according to a new survey by business research organization LIMRA Inc. The survey found paid time off was by far the most popular non-insurance benefit for employers of all sizes to offer, with […]
Employers promote competition, interactive booths and benefits information to engage employees in their wellness offerings. “Someone lasted seven minutes,” says Stephanie Enright, the Mississauga, Ont. company’s director of talent management and administration. “Our employees really like the competitiveness, and these activities help draw people to the health fair.” Over the last decade, the organization’s health […]
Sixty per cent of working Canadians have experienced a mental-health issue, an increase from 52 per cent in 2017, according to Sun Life’s 2019 barometer survey. However, the survey also found 60 per cent of working Canadians who are suffering from mental-health issues aren’t accessing support through their workplace benefits, said Carmen Bellows, the insurer’s senior mental-health […]