Depression in the workplace is not going away. Almost 500,000 Canadians aged 25 to 64 who were employed at the time that the 2002 Canadian Community Health Survey(CCHS)data was collected had experienced a “major depressive episode” in the previous year. In addition, another one million workers(8% of the workforce)had experienced depression at some point in […]
In its annual Pension and Benefits Law Update, Hicks Morley presented a list of “hot topics” yesterday at the Intercontinental Hotel in Toronto. Here are a few highlights. Get Your Supplement OMERS has introduced its new supplement to its primary pension plan for the emergency services sector(firefighters, police and paramedics). Although costs of the supplementary […]
Management of defined contribution(DC)pension plans is always key, but one area that is often neglected is “benefit adequacy,” said Susan L. Nickerson, a partner in the Pension & Benefits Practice Group with Hicks Morley law firm in Toronto. Benefit adequacy could present potential lawsuits for plan administrators, she said, if administrators don’t communicate to members […]
A panel of three experts gathered at The Metropolitan Hotel in Toronto today to discuss the results of Desjardins Financial Security’s Rethink Retirement survey. The national survey, which asked 1,500 Canadians(aged 18 and over)about their preparedness for retirement, indicated that 53% have a retirement savings plan and 48% have a retirement spending plan. However, according […]
Can employers shift responsibility when it comes to their employees’ retiree healthcare benefits? It appears so. General Motors(GM)has made headlines by agreeing to create a VEBA(Voluntary Employees’ Beneficiary Association), a tax-exempt trust that is used to prefund employee health and welfare benefits. Last month, the automotive giant agreed to pay $26.5 billion into a […]
Connor, Clark & Lunn Financial Group, an asset management company in Toronto, announced yesterday its formation of Connor, Clark & Lunn Infrastructure Ltd.(CC&L Infrastructure), a business that will invest in middle market infrastructure assets and companies in North America. CC&L Infrastructure will focus on traditional projects(roads and bridges)and energy projects(power generation facilities). These projects will […]
Although investment in emerging markets continues to climb, Canadian companies aren’t giving as much thought to risk management strategies as they should be, according to a recent survey by Ernst & Young. Ernst & Young’s Risk Management in Emerging Markets survey indicated that 60% of Canadian companies have no emerging market risk management strategy in […]
The Ontario Chamber of Commerce(OCC), Ontario’s business advocate, presented its case for pension reform at the Ontario Expert Commission on Pensions yesterday. The OCC explained that defined benefit(DB)pension plans are fast becoming unsustainable. The acting chair of the OCC Finance committee, Winton Woo, described the current funding rules as unnecessarily burdensome on employers. “It’s like […]
It’s sunny days for Canadian pension plans. According to a survey by Watson Wyatt Worldwide, Canadian plans’ funded ratios are the highest they’ve been in five years. The survey indicated that the funded ratio(that is, the ratio of assets to liabilities)of the typical defined benefit pension plan was 105% at the end of last month. […]
The Alberta and British Columbia governments have decided to appoint a joint panel to review pension standards. The governments will collaborate to review the two provinces’ pension legislation: Alberta’s Employment Pension Plans Act and British Columbia’s Pension Benefits Standards Act. The six-member panel will consult with stakeholders and present its findings and recommendations to the […]