CGI Group Inc. has rolled out a new year’s wellness program that tackles employees’ health goals from an initial consultation through to the development of a personalized action plan. The global information technology company, which has Canadian offices in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Nova Scotia, is offering the New Year, New Me program to up […]
Plan sponsors looking to integrate pharmacogenetic testing into their benefits plan will soon have lots of information to consider as Canada’s biggest insurance companies roll out pilot projects and research begins to shed light on the return on investment. “The market is expanding. Insurers are piloting projects. You will hear a lot about pharmacogenetics over the next 12 months,” said […]
A proposed guideline setting out standards for the disclosure of intermediary compensation in group benefits and retirement services could have a big effect on the market. Dave Patriarche, president of Mainstay Insurance Brokerage Inc. and founder of Canadian Group Insurance Brokers Inc., is supportive of compensation disclosure and says the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association’s new guideline makes […]
Manitoba’s Liberal Party is concerned about a number of pension plan design changes put forth by the province’s Conservative government in a public review earlier this month. “We are extremely concerned about the direction the Pallister government is taking on pensions,” Dougald Lamont, the leader of the Manitoba Liberals, said in an email to Benefits Canada. The […]
Whether plan sponsors expect a bear or a bull market in 2018, if they’re in a position to de-risk their pension plan, they should do it now, according to two investment consultants who spoke at an event in Toronto on Thursday. “From our perspective, if you look at the world over the last six years, […]
Building on a wellness program that covers employees’ overall well-being, Allstate Insurance Co. of Canada is introducing a trio of programs in January. “January can be a stressful and a tough month for many,” says Adrianne Sullivan-Campeau, the organization’s vice-president of human resources. “So you’re coming down from the holiday high, you have large bills coming in from your holiday purchases, […]
Plan sponsors to consider new mortality improvement scale.
The Canadian Institute of Actuaries has published a new mortality improvement scale as part of an effort to better reflect Canadians’ increased longevity and harmonize actuarial work in the pension and life insurance industries. The organization put together a task force to look into mortality improvement last year and, following a consultation process, issued a report in September. The report provided […]
As Hawaii introduces new legislation to provide working caregivers with a daily stipend of US$70 to offset the costs of elder care, how does it measure up against Canada’s new employment insurance caregiver benefit? The Kapuna Caregivers Assistance Act, which took effect in December, will provide the stipend to Hawaiian employees working more than 30 hours a […]
Quebec employers are expressing concern about the business impact of the province’s move to eliminate disparities in pension and supplementary group benefits plans. “It’s an issue of attractiveness of foreign investments because we’ve heard from companies that, should this situation be passed here, they could reconsider their investments in Quebec,” says Guy-François Lamy, vice-president of labour and […]