Middle class needs the most pension help

Middle-class Canadians have the most work ahead of them to save for retirement, says a report by the Public Policy Forum and Morneau Shepell.

The report, Retirement Security for Everyone, says younger middle-income workers in the private sector have the fewest retirement savings options.

Low-income people will have enough income from government programs, says the report. High-income people have private investments, inheritances and other sources of wealth at their disposal. Stuck in between are middle-income earners who often don’t have adequate workplace pensions or enough money to save for retirement on their own.

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“Over the past three decades, pension coverage among private sector employees has decreased substantially in Canada. Whereas in 1984, 44% of private sector

employees in Canada were enrolled in a Registered Pension Plan, by 2011, this number had dropped to 25%,” says the report.

Advisor’s Melissa Shin reports on the challenges of corporate pensions:

“Defined benefit pensions challenge firms that provide them by making company financials more volatile, because promises to employees must be kept regardless of economic conditions.”

Read more here.

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