Kenneth MacDonald is associate vice-president, national accounts, for HUB International Ltd.
These are the views of the author and not necessarily those of Benefits Canada.
Kenneth MacDonald is associate vice-president, national accounts, for HUB International Ltd.
These are the views of the author and not necessarily those of Benefits Canada.
I remember when employers were concerned about the potential impact of a little blue pill called Viagra that came with an annual price tag of about $1,200. In those days, $1,200 would have been a high-cost drug. In 2017, that seems like a bargain, as today’s specialty drugs cost tens of thousands of dollars per patient per year. For […]
Achieving success at anything doesn’t just happen. In his 2008 book Outliers, Malcom Gladwell suggested the biggest contributing factor to success among those who are masters in their fields is practice — 10,000 hours of it, to be specific. If you ask employers with a thriving, well-managed benefits program what their secret to success is, […]
The 21st century is a smorgasbord of endless abundance and choice. Growing up in the 1970s and ’80s, strawberries were only available in season and, if the local record store had sold out of the new hit album, you’d have to wait by the radio for hours to hear the single. These days, people can […]
It’s no surprise to most Albertans that dental fees in the province are the highest in Canada by a wide margin. Recent statistics from Alberta Blue Cross show that, on average, the cost of dental services are about 30 per cent higher in Alberta than in the neighbouring provinces of British Columbia and Saskatchewan. A […]
Many of you have probably never heard of Ben Pobjoy. While he may not be a household name, some of you may have seen his YouTube video or read about his incredible story of weight-loss, exercise and community spirit. In 2014, Pobjoy moved to Toronto to start a new job and quickly realized he was the […]
Alberta is not the same place it was just 18 months ago when West Texas Intermediate crude oil was trading around US$100 per barrel. That’s about 200% higher than it’s been trading in recent weeks. The oil bust is having a dramatic impact on the provinces that rely heavily on the energy sector to keep […]
The financial risk to employers that provide prescription drug benefits for their employees has increased significantly over the past decade. Few employers have been lucky enough to steer clear of at least one high-cost biologic and specialty drug claim impacting their experience – and regardless whether an employer has had high-cost drug claims, they most likely have felt […]
Some of the most intriguing books in history are about the resiliency and triumph of the human spirit. In Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, a teenage boy loses his entire family in a shipwreck and spends 227 days at sea in a lifeboat with a man-eating Bengal tiger. More recently, in Andy Weir’s The Martian, […]
It’s 11:00 p.m. and you’ve survived another day of back-to-back meetings, endless emails, gridlock traffic, making dinner and getting the kids off to bed. Your head hits the pillow as you turn out the light, but your mind is still at the office, assessing the day’s events and speculating what tomorrow might hold in store. This is an all-too-familiar scenario that many of us encounter routinely.
Albertans live and die by the price of crude oil. Whether you work for a company in the energy industry or not, oil prices impact the daily life of Albertans more so than in any other province in Canada. While most Canadians have been filling up their vehicles lately with smiles on their faces, we Albertans squeeze the gasoline nozzle with a little more trepidation. Low oil prices are a double-edged sword here—one edge may be cutting prices at the pumps but the other is slashing jobs and corporate expenditures.
With October inflation hitting an 18-year high, inflation risk is back on the radar of plan sponsors providing inflation-linked defined benefit pensions. In the past,…
The recent announcement that General Motors of Canada Co. purchased $1.8 billion of annuities for its salaried pension plan is creating a lot of excitement.…
Much has been written about how 2020 was unprecedented, challenging and exhausting — take your pick of adjectives. It was also a white-knuckle ride for…
Defined benefit pension plan sponsors who are interested in better pension risk management for their retirees have two main strategies to consider: They can either…
In a recent case, the Ontario Superior Court found an employee failed to mitigate damages when he refused a return-to-work offer from his employer, with whom he…
Many of the changes that were introduced to Ontario’s Employment Standards Act in January 2018 were short-lived, as the province’s new government elected in June…
With the legalization of recreational cannabis on Oct. 17, 2018, employers have been preparing to answer questions about whether their current benefits plans should provide…
In a recent decision, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice found an employer didn’t constructively dismiss a long-service employee when it provided her with 18 months…
On Oct. 17, 2018, it will be legal to purchase and consume recreational cannabis in Canada. In a recent survey of Mercer’s employer clients and Canadian employees, we found…
Some organizations are unique. Their employees are genuinely excited to be at work and an undercurrent of energy and vitality permeates the air. They’ve transformed the…
While many Canadian organizations continue to search for solutions to rising health-care costs, most are falling short. That’s why they must investigate any opportunity to find…
Macroeconomic trends such as longer lives, a lack of access to pensions and retirement supports, a low-growth environment, and persistent lack of financial literacy and…
For months, Canadian employers have been creaking under the strain of a labour crunch. Finding top talent has always been one of leaders’ most pressing…
COVID-19 cases are dropping and vaccine counts are rising. The economy is reopening and we can expect to be back at the office soon. But…
Employee benefits and total rewards planning have always been a critical element of business planning, but never more so than during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.…
Over the past few months, we’ve all had to deal with the challenges of social distancing and self-isolation. Some people have faced the extra pressure…
In Canada, the coronavirus pandemic is entering a new phase — vaccines are widely available, travel restrictions are gradually lifting and people are returning to…
For most Canadians, it’s been well over a year since most of the country went into its first lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. I…
While talk about the importance of improving diversity on corporate boards and in the C-suite has been ongoing for decades, actual action has been too…
The Council of Parties to the United Nations’ climate convention, known as COP26, which is currently underway in Glasgow has put climate change on the…
As Canadians watch the U.S. reopen with life returning to normal in various stages, in addition to thoughts of attending sporting events, concerts and gathering…
As coronavirus cases rise across the country and some return-to-work plans become return-to-home plans, many employers are wondering how to help their employees adapt once again…
The coronavirus pandemic has been disruptive for all and sadly, devastating and difficult for many. In the pandemic’s early days, we saw a great deal…
After being off of Canadians’ radar screens for years, the re-emergence of inflation in recent months is receiving significant attention for many, including pension plan…
Over the past several months, much attention has been paid to the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on financial markets and, subsequently, defined benefit pension plans’ financial conditions…
In January 2020, the Canadian Institute of Actuaries released final changes to the actuarial standards of practice for calculating commuted values, with the changes scheduled…
A retiree whose retirement savings are primarily in a registered savings plan, such as a life income fund or registered retirement income fund, already faces…
The images of floods, forest fires and heat waves over the past few years is putting climate change front of mind for many, including pension…
Pension governance policies have been common for many years, at least since the Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities published its initial guidelines on pension…
Employers that act as pension plan administrators have statutory fiduciary duties that are defined by the plan documents and by governing pension legislation. While those duties…
An important case around an employer’s ability to change its practice in granting consent benefits under a pension plan is winding its way through the courts. The…
Any return to the workplace, whether it’s after a medical or parental leave — or say, following a global pandemic — requires consideration and care…
With the repatriation of Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor following their three-year incarceration in China, relations between Ottawa and Beijing are to be reset.…
It’s a welcome development that so many pension fund managers are increasingly preoccupied with the ethical implications of their investments and incorporating data to ensure…
Various forms of digital health care have been available in Canada for several years, but I’d argue nothing has accelerated the awareness, need and adoption…
Anyone who’s ever run a marathon or completed an endurance race or trek knows the last few miles are the hardest, both physically and mentally.…
Any do-it-yourself handyman’s toolbox isn’t complete without a roll a flexible multi-purpose cloth adhesive that has unlimited uses — a.k.a. duct tape. It’s been used…
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, technology was blurring the lines between work and home life. An unhealthy attachment to our mobile phones made it easy…
Whether institutional investors welcome it — or even realize it — cryptocurrency is having an impact on their portfolios. The immense size of the crypto…
In case you missed it, a recent legal opinion by pension lawyer Randy Bauslaugh suggested plan sponsors might be personally liable for failing to consider…
A lawsuit settlement on the other side of the world is reverberating around the globe as it increases the environmental, social and governance standards for…
Meeting a deadline in the midst of a pandemic seems like a good test of corporate resiliency and, according to a recent survey of Canadian…
There is nothing like a deadline to focus the mind. Asset owners and managers who are signatories of the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investments…
Many employees may be dreaming of a carefree retirement following many years in the trenches — but they’ll likely have to keep dreaming if they…
For years, a major public sector pension governance time bomb has been hidden in plain sight. But it may be too late to alert the bomb squad;…
A report published by the Canadian Public Pension Leadership Council in February 2019 offers compelling evidence about the broad benefits of workplace pension plans. The report,…
While retirement income security is top of mind for many Canadians, British Columbia’s public sector pension plans are noteworthy models that can be emulated by sponsors…
Diversity, equity and inclusion is top of mind for many plan sponsors these days. And, while issues around retirement and pensions likely aren’t the key focus…
More Canadian employers should consider target-benefit pension plans for their employees these days. The model is gaining steam. In mid-December, 2020, the Quebec legislator signed into…
The future will increasingly favour institutional investors that can break old patterns of thought. As we move forward and industries and new technologies converge at…
Almost 16 months since the global coronavirus pandemic was first declared, there’s now yet another thing for institutional investors to worry about — the possibility…
Back in December 2018, I wrote an article asking whether it was a good time for pension plan sponsors to revisit value investing. At that time, public…
Last August, I wrote about whether central banks were creating a financial bubble with their coordinated easing programs intended to spur economic growth and/or lift inflation.…
The investment industry has been talking a lot about our position in the economic cycle and our proximity to a recession. In fact, I wrote about it…
Words and imagery have the power to connect, evoke emotion and elicit a reaction. They also have the power to be inclusive, or exclusive, and…
It’s often said perception is reality and that’s definitely true when it comes to benefits plans. If employees can’t easily perceive the value in their…
How long is your attention span? Be honest and think back to the last time you received an email about your employee benefits and didn’t…
As many employees struggle with mental-health issues during these tumultuous times, internet-based cognitive behavioural therapy is one tool that may help them bounce back. Employers…
On average, one in three Canadians will be disabled for 90 days or more at least once before they reach age 65, according to the…
Plan sponsors are faced with competing offers by insurance carriers, group managing general agents and third-party administrators, as each group promotes their own unique, yet…
While the move to more defined contribution-style health benefits plans provides greater clarity and flexibility to plan sponsors, it would be natural to wonder whether or…