Pension regulators continue to mitigate risks associated with ongoing pandemic

Nearly a year after the federal and provincial pension regulators began their emergency response to mitigate turmoil in the sector, Torys’ Pensions and Employment Practice chair Mitch Frazer told Benefits Canada that “[pension] regulators have never been more proactive than during COVID-19,”.

Mitch hailed the regulators for their rapid response that helped curtail the potential detrimental impacts of the pandemic.

“They deserve full credit for refusing to live in a bubble and moving with the kind of speed we’ve never seen them move before,” Mitch said.

However, Mitch pointed out that given the current economic turbulence, regulators will need to remain nimble for the foreseeable future.

“The problem is that the economy hasn’t settled, yet we continue to see lockdowns and reopenings, and companies are still trying to figure out whether they’re going to last and what relief they might need,” he said.

“Give the regulators credit for trying to anticipate where the need might be by offering up meaningful, flexible programs, some of which may be proving unhelpful only because the economy is still volatile.”

You can read more of Mitch and the team’s insights on the Pensions and Employment practice page.