The single-employer pension plan model is dying. We do not need to mourn its demise, but we do need to replace it.
In a recent report published by the C.D. Howe Institute, we promote the implementation of new private-sector pension plans in Canada based on a better governance model. Rather than being sponsored by single employers, the new plans would be sponsored by multiple employers and governed by independent management boards that include representation from all stakeholders. Scale is of the essence. These new plans could be either of a target-benefit pension plan variety (TBPP) or of a collective defined-contribution pension plan type (CDCP).
The names sound complicated, but the essential elements aren’t.
A…
Canada is becoming increasingly reliant on immigration for its labour-force growth, which in turn is a key component of economic prosperity. However, not all Canadians may be aware of this beneficial impact of immigration. Understanding it better may shed light on debates over the country’s immigration policy.
Because of rapid population aging over the past decade, the labour force is shrinking as a percentage of the population, as the rate of participation of Canadians in the work force drops sharply past the age of 64. In order to mitigate the negative impacts of this demographic change on the economy and government finances, the federal government has been raising Canada’s annual immigration intake.
While high…
Senator Diane Bellemare has launched an inquiry into revising the Bank of Canada Act to add full employment to the bank’s mandate. Senator Bellemare’s inquiry appears to reflect a view that the bank’s current framework – expressed in periodic agreements with the Parliament of Canada – of pursuing 2-per-cent inflation is deficient, and that requiring the bank to pursue an explicit goal related to jobs would improve it.
An alternative take on the situation is that the current framework is a sensible and highly successful way for the bank to pursue its existing mandate – which is in the Bank of Canada Act and already refers, among other goals, to mitigating fluctuations in employment and promoting the economic and…
