The federal auditor general is urging Veterans Affairs Canada to step up efforts to secure lower drug prices and look for ways to control spending on medical marijuana. The auditor general’s latest report, tabled Tuesday in the House of Commons, found the department doesn’t have an adequate process in place for making evidence-based decisions related to […]
Desjardins Group is engaging its employees in the 5/30 Health and Wellness Challenge, a six-week motivational program aimed at helping people live a healthier life. The annual event, which runs from March 31 to May 11, encourages participants to set three goals, either as an individual, as a family or as a team. The […]
The southern Alberta division of the Canadian Corps of Commissionaires has changed its defined contribution pension provider and structure in a bid to offer its 1,600 employees a plan that is simple to understand and requires little administrative support. Since the not-for-profit security services company launched Mercer’s Planisphere in September 2015, it has seen its employee participation rise, from […]
Only 13 per cent of global employees are highly engaged and highly satisfied with their workplace, according to new research by office furniture manufacturer Steelcase. The research, which surveyed 12,480 participants in 17 countries, also found that 21 per cent of respondents are somewhat engaged and somewhat satisfied, and just 11 per cent are highly dissatisfied and […]
U.S.-based yogurt-maker Chobani is handing out shares worth up to 10 per cent of the company to its 2,000 full-time employees. In a letter sent to employees this week, founder Hamdi Ulukaya wrote: “My dream, from day one, was to share our success with this entire family – for us all to have a stake in our […]
There’s a solid business case for supporting employees juggling work and caregiving responsibilities, participants at an event in Toronto heard on Wednesday. “Those employers are doing it because it makes business sense . . . and actually, it affects their bottom line if they lose carers because they don’t provide them with the flexibility they […]
Bell Canada has launched two new support programs under its employee assistance program. Its new peer support referral program connects staff and their family to support groups for a variety of mental health-related issues, and its online group counselling for anxiety program uses cognitive behavioural therapy. Both are available through its provider, Morneau Shepell. The new programs, […]
In its first federal budget last month, the Liberal government said it would seek additional funding from Canada’s pension funds as it looks to invest more than $120 billion in infrastructure over the next decade. As noted in the budget, the government plans to “engage public pension plans and other innovative sources of funding.” According to a story […]
Kickbacks for health benefits billed to multinational industrial company Atlas Copco Canada Inc. are at the centre of a criminal trial underway in Sudbury, Ont., that’s being billed as one of the largest frauds in northern Ontario history. The case, R. v. Plate, which is before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Sudbury, alleges the company’s former […]
The Ontario Registered Pension Plan Administration Corp. will begin an extensive education campaign about the ORPP for employers this summer and a verification process for all companies enrolling in it as of Jan. 1, 2017, will begin in the fall. Marc Sharrett, director, strategic stakeholder relations, ORPP Implementation Secretariat at the Ministry of Finance, provided the update […]