The union representing 400 Dominion Diamond Mines employees is attempting to guarantee that the company honours its multi-million dollar pension shortfall as it goes through a court-ordered creditor protection process. If the shortfall isn’t prioritized, the Union of Northern Workers said it’s concerned that active members and pensioners would all face reduced pensions. “How much […]
The Pension Investment Association of Canada is calling on provincial governments to allow pension plan sponsors to opt out of making any special payments for a period of six to 12 months or until there’s greater visibility of the end of the fallout from the coronavirus crisis. “We recommend that no conditionality or approval requirements be applied […]
The Nova Scotia Teachers’ Pension Plan is bracing for the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on its assets as it reported a 78.2 per cent funded status on a going-concern basis — up from 75.3 per cent at the end of 2018 — and a $1.497-million deficit in its 2019 annual results. “While the plan remains […]
Provincial and federal regulators are beginning to roll out relief measures for defined benefit pension plan sponsors, ranging from administrative filing extensions to freezes on commuted-value transfers. At the federal level, the government announced Thursday it will be halting solvency special payments for federally regulated DB plans until the end of 2020 to ensure plan […]
The federal government is halting solvency special payments for federally regulated defined benefit pension plans until the end of 2020. The moratorium on payments under the Pension Benefits Standards Act is aimed at ensuring that employers have financial resources to continue their operations and pension plans, as well as to protect plan members, said the […]
With coronavirus causing market volatility and an increase in the size of solvency liabilities, defined benefit pension plans are feeling the impact. One potential way for plan sponsors to ease the pain is by performing an early actuarial valuation to capture year-end 2019 numbers. While most Canadian jurisdictions require plans to file valuations every three years, […]
The Association of Canadian Pension Management and the Pension Investment Association of Canada have sent the federal government their wish lists for actions to help federally regulated pension plans deal with the fallout of the coronavirus, with a focus on measures to help with cash flow, liquidity and a call for broader solvency reform. As […]
Financial hardship is hitting employers across Canada and they’re starting to make difficult choices around cost-cutting measures within their businesses. “Some plan sponsors may be considering changes to their plan design to address these cost concerns during these turbulent times,” said Jana Steele, partner and department chair of the pension and benefits team at Osler, Hoskin […]
Canadians, like many around the world, have watched from the sidelines as interest rates have plummeted and the markets have dropped significantly over the past couple of weeks, with a devastating toll on both personal retirement savings and employer-sponsored pension and other retirement savings plans. Existing industry concerns about the adequacy of retirement savings in […]
With asset deterioration due to drops in equity markets and a decrease in long-term government bond yields causing an increase in solvency liabilities, pension funds are in a tough position. A Canadian defined benefit solvency funding calculation assumes some plan members will elect to take a commuted-value lump sum, while other members will elect to […]