Cost sustainability

Many organizations had a year of shoring up expenses and likely went through a challenging budgeting process for 2026. Budgetary pressures on compensation programs while employees are looking for higher wages have consequently placed a greater emphasis on showing the breadth of an organization’s benefits and retirement offerings.

Read: My Take: Helping employees amid rising cost of living a win-win for employers

Despite the tightening labour market, Benefits Canada’s 2025 Future of Work Survey found nearly two-thirds of employers remain concerned with attraction and retention of talent, putting benefits and retirement programs in the spotlight through a lens of total compensation. It will be important for employers to communicate the value of their benefits and retirement plans while balancing plan competitiveness with cost controls as medical inflation coupled with increased utilization puts upward pressure on benefits plan costs.

Chronic conditions

More than half of working Canadians report living with at least one chronic health condition, and while people are choosing to stay in the workforce longer than they might have a few years ago, chronic conditions aren’t only an issue for older people.

While the risk of chronic disease increases with age, there’s increased incidence at younger ages, resulting in younger people living with chronic health conditions.

A thorough analysis into an........

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