CE Session - Plan Design Changes for Aging Demographics and Improved Longevity

SPEAKERS

Jeremy Bell   Partner   George & Bell Consulting Inc.	Jason Hutton   Vice President, Sales and Strategic Development   First Health Care	Michael J. Peters    Deputy Superintendent     Pensions Financial Institutions Commission of BC

For a detailed event brochure, please click here.    

Course Objective:
Three dynamic speakers collaborate in this half–day session to discuss the challenges employers are facing with respect to aging demographics. Discussions will include:
 

• Pensions discussion:
   
  
  • Defined benefit provisions (new act provisions for actuarial increases owing to deferred retirement; increasing longevity and associated increase in liabilities; reference to the “longevity” pension discussed in the D’Amours report out of Quebec)
     
  • Defined contribution provisions (replacement ratios with reference to work done by OECD and International Organization of Pension Supervisors; auto-escalation of contribution rates; sustainable withdrawal rates from DC or LIF vehicles)
     
  • General issues (overcoming the resistance to the purchase of annuities and giving consideration of annuities as part of an overall financial plan)
     
• Benefits discussion:
   
  
  • Long-term disability coverage typically only covers employees until they reach age 65: existing claims generally cease at 65 and new claims generally don’t start after age 65. In recent years, there have been external changes that may impact plan sponsors’ abilities to continue with an age 65 limit: elimination of mandatory retirement and an increase in Old Age Security eligibility from 65 to 67. In addition, employees are living longer, healthier lives. This discussion will explore the human rights issues associated with maintaining a long-term disability age limit at age 65, and practical implications of changes in the age limit or elimination of the age limit altogether.
     
  • Over 1/4 of Canadians 15 years and older provide care to chronically ill, disabled or an aging family member or friend in the past 12 months, and for the first time ever, the senior population is expected to outnumber that of children under age 15 at some point between 2015 and 2021. Care needs continue to grow at alarming rates, putting the squeeze on the Canadian workplace, with an average 1.5M workdays missed per month. As Canada’s population ages, new challenges are being faced by organizations which will change the way they need to approach not only recruitment of employees, but management and support of existing employees who are challenged with care giving responsibilities. This discussion will exlpore how this continues to impact employers currently and in the future, and examples of how this is being approached to find solutions across North America.