UCS Forest Group’s chief human resources and administrative officer discusses the complexities of the post-pandemic workplace, training managers to adapt to the new working environment and ensuring her dogs live their best lives. Q: What top challenges do you face in your role? A: In this post-pandemic world, employees are dealing with a lot of […]
While flexible working arrangements may render the traditional workday obsolete, concepts like triple-peak work hours may jeopardize the work-life balance employees are seeking. A report from Microsoft Corp. found triple-peak work hours — in which employees divide their workday over three separate blocks of time, including late in the evenings — are increasing in popularity. […]
Navigating the care path for health-care issues can be overwhelming and confusing — so much so, it can act as a deterrent to people seeking help. In terms of mental-health support, the Bank of Montreal launched a digital navigation guide in May to point staff in the right direction. The tool, which is available to […]
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc. is providing employees and their dependants with $10,000 in lifetime gender affirmation coverage. The additional coverage complements existing benefits that support transitioning employees, including prescription drug coverage for hormone therapy, mental-health coverage, disability insurance and medical leaves for employees who are recovering from surgeries. The new coverage is also extended to […]
Housing affordability will be a challenge, particularly for newcomers to Canada — pushing more of that demographic into the rental market, said Aaron Pittman, head of institutional at Equiton, during the Canadian Investment Review‘s 2023 Global Investment Conference. With 20 per cent of the Canadian workforce expected to retire over the next 10 years and a […]
When key stakeholders are examining sustainability solutions, they aren’t spending enough time on whether these solutions are actually capital efficient from energy return on investment and productivity perspectives, said Patrick Kent, portfolio manager and head of the small-cap equities team at Newton Investment Management Group, during the Canadian Investment Review‘s 2023 Global Investment Conference. The […]
There’s a distinct window of opportunity for institutional investors to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through refurbishing brown buildings in Europe to make them operationally carbon neutral, said Lucy Swinton, investment director at Fidelity International, during the Canadian Investment Review’s 2023 Global Investment Conference. Environmental, social and governance — particularly the ‘E’ aspects — is increasingly becoming a disruptive […]
Proxy voting is playing a bigger role in institutional investors’ environmental, social and governance strategies, according to Christie Stephenson, executive director of the Peter P. Dhillon Centre for Business Ethics at the University of British Columbia’s Sauder School of Business, speaking during the Canadian Investment Review‘s 2023 Global Investment Conference. Long viewed as a value […]
With many stressors weighing on employees amid the current economic climate, it’s important for employers to recognize the ‘rage applying’ trend is rooted in workplace mental-health issues, says Paula Allen, global leader of research and client insights at Telus Health. Employees’ hypersensitivity to stress can present itself through interpersonal communications, including expressions of anger and […]
As world markets contend with supply chain issues stemming from climate change, the coronavirus pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, environmental, social and governance considerations are slowly taking a more prominent role in pension funds’ risk assessments. In particular, Canadian pension funds are taking a progressive approach to ESG investing. Many have become signatories of […]