Benecaid Health Benefits Solutions Inc. is introducing a new online health benefits platform this month. The online app, Honeybee, allows employers to offer their health benefits package through a health-care spending account and allowance account. Under the platform’s defined contribution model, employers allocate funds for each account, allowing employees to choose their own benefits. Honeybee […]
In 1977, when Benefits Canada published its first group benefits providers report, the industry was much more crowded. The big companies on the scene today weren’t yet the massive entities that now dominate the market. More U.S. insurers had their hats in the ring. And the big players had yet to acquire some of the […]
Does your absence management strategy, pension plan or health and wellness program deserve to be recognized? Benefits Canada’s annual Workplace Benefits Awards is now open for nominations. The 2017 program includes three new categories: pension performance, diversity program and drug/benefits plan innovation. Markers for success in the pension performance category include cost containment, increased participation […]
Ontario’s Ministry of Labour released a report today that makes 173 recommendations on provincial workplace standards, including employees’ entitlements to benefits. The report suggests numerous changes that would affect employers, says Craig Rix, a partner and employment lawyer at Hicks Morley Hamilton Stewart Storie LLP in Toronto. “Employers will have to start thinking about how they can […]
In 2010, David Styles moved to Alberta from Ontario to work as vice-president of relationship investments for the Alberta Investment Management Corp. While the decision to uproot his life wasn’t easy, Styles says the opportunity to earn a sizeable compensation, if he performed well, was a big draw. The majority would come from AIMCo’s long-term […]
Shoppers Drug Mart and Loblaw Companies Ltd. have introduced a medical marijuana benefit to their drug plan. Forty-five thousand employees are eligible for the benefit, which comes with a cap of $1,500 per year. “We regularly review our benefits plans to ensure they continue to meet the needs of our employees while also adapting to changes […]
When should a candidate for a job ask about benefits and compensation? It’s a key question many companies and human resource professionals are asking following a high-profile case of an applicant who lost out on a second interview after she asked about benefits and compensation. On March 12, the applicant, Taylor Byrnes, tweeted a screenshot […]
Postmedia Network Canada Corp. is making a number of changes to its defined benefit pension plan, its capital accumulation plans and its benefits plans, according to a document from the newspaper company’s human resources department. Only non-unionized employees — approximately 71 per cent of the workforce — were affected. The organization is closing its defined […]
Have no fear, small businesses — you won’t go bankrupt if you try to compete with Google’s employee benefits offering. Besides health-care coverage, the most popular benefits aren’t too expensive, according to a new survey by marketing agency Fractl. More than half (54 per cent) of the 2,000 American employees who responded to the survey said they’d […]
The Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission has ruled a benefits plan must cover a member’s medical marijuana prescription. “Employee benefit plans are not required to cover the sun, moon, and the stars,” Benjamin Perryman, chair of the board of inquiry, wrote in his ruling. But if a member with a disability requests coverage similar to what other […]