Home Cassandra Williamson-Hopp

In April, Pride at Work Canada convened nine professionals across the country to discuss the specific impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on LGBTQ+ employees. “We wanted to ensure everyone was working together to gather nationwide perceptions because each jurisdiction is viewing things differently,” says Colin Druhan, the organization’s executive director. “We also wanted to guarantee […]

  • May 6, 2020 November 12, 2020
  • 09:00

Much attention has been paid to surface-level diversity in the boardroom, but what about diversity of thought? “Groupthink describes faulty decision-making,” says Rahul Bhardwaj, president and chief executive officer at the Institute of Corporate Directors. “It’s literally when you have folks that get together to come up with a certain decision based on a certain […]

  • April 22, 2020 December 13, 2020
  • 08:33

Mental-health issues continue to be a driver of employee absence and disability year after year, so it’s important for employers to understand and cover a wider range of mental-health professionals on their benefits plans. Back in 2016, Scotiabank’s mental-health coverage was limited to psychologists. However, as different designations gained acceptance in the Canadian health-care space, […]

  • April 17, 2020 March 4, 2021
  • 08:51

While physical well-being is vital during the coronavirus pandemic, the situation is raising multiple mental-health issues, including rising stress levels exacerbated by job uncertainty and social isolation. Looking at mental-health policies and tools, innovative practices and work-from-home protocols, Benefits Canada hosted a panel of experts in a webinar on March 31 to answer plan sponsor […]

  • April 8, 2020 November 12, 2020
  • 09:15

While treatment options for cancer are more than they used to be, many still aren’t covered under the public health-care system, according to Tim Clarke, president of TC Health Consulting Inc. In a session at Benefits Canada’s 2020 Employers Cancer Care Summit on Mar. 3, he said employer costs for cancer drug treatments have doubled between […]

  • March 27, 2020 November 12, 2020
  • 14:50

While kidney cancer is uncommon in patients younger than age 45, there’s an increasing incidence in diagnosis in young people because of the advent of imaging technology, according to Dr. Nazanin Fallah-Rad, medical oncologist at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and Mount Sinai Hospital. “There’s an increasing incidence of younger people being diagnosed with kidney cancer and […]

  • March 27, 2020 November 12, 2020
  • 14:49

By the year 2031, 2.2 million Canadians will be living with cancer, with 40 per cent between the ages of 20 and 65 — the typical working years, according to Maureen Parkinson, provincial rehabilitation counsellor at B.C. Cancer Agency and co-director of Cancer and Work. In a session at Benefits Canada’s 2020 Employers Cancer Care […]

  • March 27, 2020 November 12, 2020
  • 14:48

When it comes to benefits plan management, each case is individual, said Diana Godfrey, senior vice-president of human resources and corporate at Fidelity Canada, during a session at Benefits Canada’s 2020 Employers Cancer Care Summit on Mar. 3. “If employers think they have a program or policy that covers every situation, they may be mistaken.” […]

  • March 27, 2020 November 12, 2020
  • 14:47

When a person experiences a cancer diagnosis and undergoes treatment, it can be one of the most distressing experiences they can go through, so it’s important for employers to understand psychosocial oncology. “We’re now collecting evidence to show that proactive care — psychosocial oncology — is effective in helping people prepare and deal with psychological […]

  • March 27, 2020 November 12, 2020
  • 14:46

With the coronavirus pandemic rapidly evolving, the global employment landscape is facing unprecedented challenges. Looking at short-term disability programs, benefits plans, human resources policies and legal obligations, Benefits Canada hosted a panel of experts in a webinar on March 19 to answer plan sponsor questions. Click here to find out what you missed. For individuals […]

  • March 27, 2020 November 12, 2020
  • 09:05