Canada-based Great-West Life has rolled out a simple solution for Quebec's voluntary retirement savings plan (VRSP), to enable customers to plan their retirement.
The company said that the new policy has been released following Quebec’s issuance of new regulation which mandated that businesses located in Quebec with five or more eligible employees will be required to offer a VRSP unless they already have another group retirement savings plan in place.
The new VRSP legislation has become effective from 1 July 2014, while the requirement for employers to provide a VRSP will be phased in over several years depending on the size of the company.
Commenting on the launch of the new project, Great-West Life group retirement services regional vice-president Anthony Cardone said that the new product offers key mechanisms to enable retirement reform in Canada without disturbing existing employer-sponsored retirement plans.
"Our experience as a leading provider of group retirement services for Canadians will provide employers with a VRSP that’s simple to implement and administer – freeing them to focus on their day-to-day business," Cardone added.
Great-West Life’s VRSP allows employees to pick up from clearly defined, understandable investment options and if they don’t make an investment choice, their contributions will be directed into a target date fund that automatically diversifies and rebalances as employees approach their anticipated retirement dates.
Employees are given option to select their contribution rates and for those who don’t, contributions are set at a default rate that automatically grows over time.
The VRSPs offers access to managed, comprehensive Harmonized Asset Class Funds that are multi-manager, multi-investment style and diversified among specific asset classes, allowing for a higher potential for investment growth and success.
Image: Great West Life building in Winnipeg (right). Photo: courtesy of Wikipedia.