Dear Subscriber,
December is here and the race to year end is upon us once again. If you're like me, you're in a frantic rush to the finish. Be it trying to meet with clients for renewals or getting new cases on the books with holiday/ vacation time looming in the near future.
We've been having good attendance at our mini webinars. If you have not attended one of those, or the many CGIB Coffee Chats, they are a great causal way to reconnect, talk through ideas, gain knowledge and help others. If you have any suggestions for topics, reach out.
As always, if you have questions, just reach out.
Dave |
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OUR EVENTS
CGIB COFFEE CHATS
Coffee chats are like a virtual breakfast. Log in and talk about what's on your mind. Best done from a computer, with a camera and a microphone. No CE credits, but also no cost, just show up.
December 9th postponed Tuesday December 21st @ 2pm (EST) Thursday January 6th @2pm (EST) Tuesday January 11th @ 2pm (EST) - CGIB CHIP plan Tuesday January 18th @ 2pm (EST) Thursday February 3rd @2pm (EST) ____________________________________________________________
CGIB WEBINARS
I have posted the notes, LTD excel sheet and recording of the LTD presentation we held earlier this month. They are all in the appropriate sections under the Members Only tab when you sign in. ___________________________________________________________
CGIB no longer runs the breakfast meetings, but supports the initiative of the volunteers that do.
Please find the details for your closest location below. Ajax, Cambridge, London, Markham, Oakville, St Catherines, Toronto, Vancouver Island, Windsor or the Virtual National Meeting
Virtual meetings through Zoom may be utilized until COVID19 passes. Please contact the event champions to be added to their lists, and receive more info.
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LOOKING FOR PEOPLE
O&A is a leading consulting and brokerage firm that helps global companies establish and manage comprehensive employee benefit solutions for their Canadian businesses. We have been in business for over 22 years and have grown every year since inception. Our team currently consists of over 25 staff members in various roles, assisting over 400 corporate clients across Canada and managing partner relationships in over 150 countries worldwide. We are recruiting for 2 Senior Account Management roles that require high levels of service and technical skills:
- Providing guidance and advise on trends, regulatory requirements and market practices
- Benchmarking and client introductions
- Group benefit implementations
- Group retirement implementations
- Regular and annual reporting (experience, renewal, benchmarking, governance, etc.)
- Addressing client inquiries and managing those relationships
- Maintaining in house CRM
- Other tasks and projects as required
For full posting see: Steven Owen, CPA President c. 705.994.3099 ____________________________________________________________ Upcoming CGIB Events: Due to a reduced interest in "in-person" events we will postpone our upcoming events
Toronto - Wednesday November 3rd - POSTPONED to March 2nd Calgary - Tuesday March 29th- POSTPONED Vancouver - Thursday March 31st - POSTPONED
Watch for more more details. |
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GET ON SLACK
The CGIB SLACK channel is a great place to pose questions, share info and learn a ton from your fellow members. The info and discussions that are posted there are unlike anywhere in the industry. Sadly, about 25% of CGIB members are still missing out on all the info being shared. Others have not taken a look at all the documents, videos and information available in MEMBERS ONLY to make their life easier.
NOTE TO ALL SLACK USERS: We now have 40+ channels in Slack to handle different topics. Please take a moment to add these channels to your menu. To do so, just click on the + next to Channels on the top left. Browse the channels and then click JOIN to add each of them. By doing so you won’t be missing some really great info. |
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SUGGESTED READING
We think the information contained below is of great value and encourage you to read the articles and check out the events that interest you. In most cases, these articles and events are not run by CGIB, so please contact the organizers for more information. We take no responsibility for the websites, events, organizations or their content. |
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ARBITRATORS SPLIT ON MANDATORY VACCINES Arbitrator decisions in Ontario highlight the importance of employers assessing their mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies in the specific context of their circumstances, dangers, and hazards associated with the workplace, the applicable collective agreement, and any applicable legislated or regulatory requirements in a separate decision, says a Hicks Morley ‘FTR Now.’ In ‘United Food And Commercial Workers Union, Canada Local 333 and Paragon Protection Ltd.,’ the arbitrator upheld a mandatory vaccination policy based on its reasonableness in the circumstances of that workplace and the unique language of that particular collective agreement. However, in ‘Electrical Safety Authority and Power Workers’ Union,’ the arbitrator’s assessment of the reasonableness of an employer’s mandatory vaccination policy in the specific context of the workplace was the employer’s policy was unreasonable in that employees may be disciplined, discharged, or placed on administrative leave without pay if they did not get fully vaccinated. In arriving at this conclusion, the arbitrator noted that the situation involving COVID-19 is fluid and ever evolving and that circumstances for this employer may change. He also noted that in workplace settings where the risks are high (e.g. involving vulnerable populations) then “mandatory vaccination policies may not only be reasonable, but may also be necessary and required to protect those vulnerable populations.” The arbitrator stated, among other things, that there was no specific provision in the collective agreement which addressed vaccinations, the employer had not previously required employees to be vaccinated, and there was no legislated requirement that the employees be vaccinated.
HEALTH BENEFITS GAP UNCOVERED A survey conducted by the Conference Board of Canada together with TELUS Health has found an up to 83 per cent gap between the health benefits Canadian employees report they have and what they want when it comes to extended health and wellbeing support from their employers. This gap is significant enough to create employee disengagement and has the potential to cause significant organizational turnover at a time when hiring and retaining employees is increasingly challenging, it says. The data suggests that Canadian employers need to consider more personalized and flexible workplace health benefits plans that offer more preventive health services and allow for more choice and ways to stay healthy. One way to achieve more flexibility is through virtual healthcare and telemedicine which may help in attracting and retaining top talent. It shows 40 per cent of respondents reported using virtual healthcare for either physical or mental health services indicating that virtual healthcare is key to allowing Canadians and organizations to thrive as we move to a more digital age. As well, of the employees surveyed who have a personal health spending account (HSA), 42 per cent do, or would, spend funds to top up on basic dental and vision care and prescription drugs expenses rather than paramedical services like mental health-related consults. The top five health benefits reported as most important are basic dental services 81.9 per cent, eye exams 81.8 per cent, glasses/contacts 80.4 per cent, and both pension and retirement savings plans at 73 per cent. Flexwork and telework appear to have increased in importance as an ancillary benefit with most respondents rating them as essential (65 per cent and 72 per cent, respectively). As expected, as more organizations facilitate this way of working due to the COVID-19 pandemic, employees are recognizing the broader benefit to their overall quality of life. Since employees view the overall health benefits package as a gesture of how an employer is going to treat them, this suggests it is critical for employers to adapt health and wellness programs, not only to attract employees, but also to retain them and keep them productive. |
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Hiring phone salespeople and giving them a script used to make sense. Throw enough human spam at the population and sooner or later, you might make a profit. The person who responded to my web query the other day was doing a great job of working with his script. It didn’t really sound like him, but he was grabbing bits and pieces and pushing hard. What he wasn’t doing was listening.
He hadn’t been empowered or trained to ask questions, and he used every gap in the conversation to read another part of his script. And when I spoke up, it didn’t matter what I said, it was back to the script. This is a waste. A waste for me, a waste for him and a waste for the people who hired him.
Sales have been around a long time. They’re not going away. But they work best when they are a transfer of emotion, an actual human connection and a dialogue.
If all you’re going to do is read a script, best to put it on your website instead.
My Take on Seths Post
Put another way... ASK LEADING QUESTIONS..then...sit back, shut up and listen. Our ability to provide value added solutions don't start until we've identified the real problem. Scripts are important as a teaching tool, but once you've built one (and are comfortable with the content) it's time to toss it and only use it enough to know what questions to ask to get the info you need. |
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EDUCATIONAL EVENTS
ONLINE CE CREDITS
Looking for benefits dedicated online CE courses? Want to provide your admin and support staff with basic knowledge? Want to dig into something more detailed for your benefits/insurance business? Business Career College (BCC) has an extensive catalogue of online CE courses with a number of group benefits specific courses covering topics ranging from contractual concerns, plan designs, and underwriting requirements, to product specifics and integration with government benefits. Courses consist of narrated videos with short, online quizzes. The full catalogue includes over 60 courses, podcasts, and videos covering topics from the world of insurance, investments, financial planning, taxation, and ethics with a focus on technical content and real-world application. Courses are accredited for the maximum categories of credits and can include provincial Life and A&S credits, FP Canada, Advocis, and more! Use code CGIB on registration for your first three months free! |
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Earn a CE Credit for On-Demand Webinar: "Considerations for an Inclusive and Sustainable National Drug Funding Model for Rare Disease Drug Treatments"
The Mapol webinar entitled "Considerations for an Inclusive and Sustainable National Drug Funding Model for Rare Disease Drug Treatments" is available on-demand. Please see below for an infographic on the results of the polling questions from the webinar, which originally aired on September 28, 2021.
Click here to register for the on-demand webinar if you have not already. This on-demand webinar qualifies for 1 CE credit from the Institute for Advanced Financial Education. Individuals who would like a CE certificate are required to: - View the on-demand webinar in its entirety by December 3, 2021.
- Respond to the polling questions.
- Fill out the post-webinar survey, indicating that you wish to receive a CE credit.
If you've already registered for this webinar and wish to earn a CE credit or watch it again, the on-demand login instructions were sent to you via email on October 1, 2021. We've extended the window to earn a CE credit until December 3, 2021.
Please feel free to contact us at lwong@mapol.ca if you have any questions. ____________________________________________________________
Access to Medicines and the Evolving Benefits Plan Landscape Mapol Inc. invites you to attend a complimentary webinar sponsored by AstraZeneca Canada.The Webinar will be held on Tuesday, December 7, 2021 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time. Speakers:
Tim Clarke, BMath, FSA, FCIA President, tc Health Consulting Inc.
Leanne K. Mielczarek Executive Director, Lupus CanadaTopics to be discussed: - Private and public payer policies and their impact on drug access for patients
- Innovative listing agreements and the difference between price discounting and workplace outcomes agreements
- Adding value to enrich your discussions with plan sponsors and insurers
- Spotlight on lupus: a chronic condition that affects a younger working patient population
Please follow the below steps to register: - Click the registration link.
- Fill in the required information on the registration page, then click "Register."
- Closer to the webinar date, you will receive a registration confirmation email with the webinar login details.
An application for 1 CE credit will be submitted to the Institute for Advanced Financial Education. Individual CE applications are not submitted to any other regulatory body (i.e. AIC, ICM, CSF, IIROC, etc.).Please note, this complimentary webinar is limited to invited guests including insurers, PBMs, TPAs, benefits consultants, and employers.
Don't forget to register for the next webinar on November 23, 2021. Our full webinar schedule is here. Tue., December 7, 2021 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. EST
Tim Clarke, BMath, FSA, FCIA President, tc Health Consulting Inc.
Leanne K. Mielczarek Executive Director, Lupus Canada |
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Need help? Have questions? Looking for something?
Reach out to CGIB - Dave Patriarche - dave@cgib.ca - 905-886-9203 |
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