Reflections for Canada’s Healthy Workplace Month
At the 44th Annual ISCEBS Employee Benefits Symposium, one idea stuck with me long after the sessions ended:
“Your benefits plan should fit your people, not the other way around.”
That simple insight reframed how I think about employee wellbeing. Every generation—from early-career professionals to those nearing retirement—experiences work, stress, and health differently. So why should their benefits look the same?
When I returned home, I dug into our data from the Environics Research Group Plan Sponsor Syndicated Study, which surveys more than 1,000 Canadian plan sponsors each year. I focused on organizations where at least 35% of employees fall into a single age group, to see how plan design shifts when a workforce skews younger, mid-career, later-career, or retirement-age.
The results reveal how Canadian employers are moving from simply covering employees to genuinely supporting them.
From Coverage to Care
Between 2021 and 2025, Canada’s group benefits landscape evolved in both scale and purpose. What began as post-pandemic recovery has become a redefinition of how organizations express care and culture through benefits.
The progression can be seen in three stages:
Rebuilding (2021–2022)
Employers worked to restore stability and consistency after a period of disruption.
Reinforcing (2023–2024)
Health, mental wellbeing, and income protection were prioritized as strategic levers for productivity and retention.
Reframing (2025)
Benefits are now understood as a core expression of belonging. They’re not just plans; they’re part of how organizations show they understand their people.
Benefits have become the language through which organizations express empathy.
2025 Integration Comes of Age
By 2025, Canadian employers had reached a new equilibrium. Core coverage is stronger than ever: 69% now provide prescription drug coverage, 76% offer dental insurance, and 61% include vision care—the highest levels in five years.
Mental health support has also become standard. Over one-third of employers now include an Employee Assistance Program, and nearly half offer paramedical coverage that includes psychology.
Income protection has expanded steadily. Short-term disability coverage is offered by 37% of employers and long-term disability by 41%, while telemedicine and healthcare spending accounts have settled around one in four plans.
These figures signal a more mature approach: dependable core coverage combined with flexible layers that reflect modern wellbeing needs.
Telemedicine is no longer “the future” of benefits—it’s simply part of how care happens.
Generational Design in Practice
When one generation makes up a significant share of an organization’s workforce, that demographic influence is visible in plan design.
- Predominantly younger workforces (under 30): Emphasize digital access, wellness, and convenience—telemedicine, wellness programs, and spending accounts. These choices reflect a desire for autonomy and immediacy.
- Mid-career organizations (ages 30–44): Focus on balance, pairing comprehensive health coverage with family-oriented supports and life insurance. Their benefits mirror the dual pressures of career and caregiving.
- Later-career groups (ages 45–64): Offer the most complete coverage, prioritizing stability, income protection, and mental health supports.
- Retirement-age organizations (65 and older): Focus on continuity, with higher rates of EAP and travel insurance coverage.
Each generation designs for the kind of security it values most.
Younger employees seek flexibility. Mid-career workers look for balance. Older employees want reassurance and consistency. These generational differences reveal something deeper: benefits design is becoming a mirror of workforce identity.
Mental Health as a System
Mental health coverage has undergone one of the most significant transformations since 2021. What was once a patchwork of programs has become a structured, multi-layered system.
Digital First Supports
Such as telemedicine and wellness apps provide fast access for younger employees who value convenience.
Therapeutic Pathways
Through paramedical and psychological services serve mid-career workers managing complex life demands.
Guided Programs
Like EAPs and counselling continue to support later-career employees navigating transition or caregiving.
Together, these layers create a more holistic model of care—one that moves from treatment to prevention and from access to personalization.
Mental health is no longer a benefit; it’s the backbone of organizational culture.
The Equity Challenge
Amid these advances lies a growing divide. Organizations with older, more established workforces consistently report richer benefits coverage. Those with younger teams—often in sectors such as technology, retail, or hospitality—lag behind on nearly every measure.
This difference goes beyond demographics. It reveals a structural imbalance in how security is distributed across generations. Younger workers, often facing the greatest financial strain, tend to have the least protection.
If we don’t address this imbalance, we risk embedding inequity into the next generation of work.
Forward-looking employers are responding through pooled-sector plans, modular design, and portable benefits. These models make coverage more adaptable and equitable across industries and company sizes. They also strengthen inclusion and retention—two of the biggest predictors of long-term workforce health.
Looking Ahead
The next chapter of Canadian benefits design will focus on personalization, integration, and sustainability. Emerging priorities include:
- Seamless connections between health, mental, and financial wellbeing.
- Adaptive plans that adjust automatically to employees’ life stages and circumstances.
- Early-warning analytics that detect stress and burnout before they become claims.
- Funding models that balance inclusivity, flexibility, and cost predictability.
The future of benefits isn’t about offering more—it’s about offering meaningfully.
Organizations that embrace this next stage will not only build stronger plans but also stronger cultures. When benefits evolve in step with employees’ lives, they become a shared expression of care and belonging.
Why This Matters for Canada’s Healthy Workplace Month
Five years of data reveal a powerful lesson: benefits design is culture design.
Core protections are now the foundation of trust.
Mental health works best as a system of care, not a single program.
Generational diversity should guide design, not complicate it.
The healthiest workplaces are those where every employee can say, “This plan feels like it was designed for me.” When that happens, a benefits plan becomes more than coverage—it becomes a promise kept.
For more information on the Group Plan Sponsor Syndicated Study, please contact Bernice Cheung.
About the Data: A Note on Methodology
The Group Plan Sponsor Syndicated Study draws on a nationally representative sample of more than 1,000 plan sponsors across small (40%), medium (30%), and large (30%) organizations, proportions that have remained consistent since the study’s inception. The sample is regionally distributed to reflect the Canadian employer landscape: British Columbia (16%), Alberta (14%), Manitoba/Saskatchewan (6%), Ontario (39%), Quebec (19%), and Atlantic Canada (6%).
To ensure representativeness, we continuously monitor key organizational attributes including company type, industry sector, decision-making authority, respondent role, geographic scope of operations, company tenure, annual revenue, group retirement assets under management (AUM), and group insurance premiums in force. This approach allows the study to accurately reflect the structure and diversity of Canadian employers over time.
Plan sponsors who want to help shape the next chapter of benefits design can share their perspectives through the Voice of Group Plan Sponsors (VGPS) community. By contributing insights and experiences, members strengthen the collective understanding that drives innovation and equity in workplace wellbeing. Join the community here.
