Analysis provided by Canada Life
Global central banks made a major shift in 2024 to start rate-cutting cycles as inflation eased. Interest rates are expected to keep declining, although there’s still a risk inflation could rise again. Based on incoming economic data and in response to slower economic growth, the Bank of Canada and other central banks in Europe began cutting rates before the Fed. In China, stimulus measures were announced to spark activity as property market weakness spilled into other sectors. There is the expectation of diverging monetary policy to be a key macroeconomic driver. The Fed’s second-last policy meeting of 2024 was eclipsed by the U.S. election and investors will continue sizing up the new administration’s policies.
2025 is expected to be a more volatile year. U.S. tariffs could significantly change the market environment for export-reliant economies like Canada, Europe and China. Market expectations for global growth have also been tempered by concerns over the health of the global consumer and changing population demographics. There are still compelling opportunities in sectors linked to AI and sustainable energy.
With respect to the CEIRP Plan, the Cadence Target Date Funds’ absolute performance was strong again, with a return ranging from 10.3% to 19.9% (depending on the target date). In addition, the Portfolio Target Risk Funds achieved returns raging approximately from 9.5% to 19.7% (depending on the risk-based fund). The Socially Responsible Balanced Fund earned a 13.5% return. These results were back-to-back strong years in the capital markets.
Canada Life’s Forward Looking Statement: The historical performance shown is that of the Canada Life segregated fund or the underlying third-party fund. Past performance doesn’t indicate future performance. For more information on the funds, call Canada Life at 1-800-724-3402.
| ASSETS | MEMBERS | |
|---|---|---|
| 12/31/2024 | $1,300,786,024 | 34,758 |
| 12/31/2023 | $1,061,187,672 | 33,662 |
| DIFFERENCE | $239,598,352 | 1099 |
| % GROWTH | 23% | 3.26% |
Annual Contributions (in dollars)
| 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 87,085,600 | 150,737,514 | 154,013,674 | 112,517,529 | 177,484,461 |
![](<a href="https://ceirp.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Members-Assets-2024.jpg">https://ceirp.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/CEIRP_Growth_EN.jpg</a> "CEIRP_Growth_EN")
2024 was a transformative year for the CEIRP team.
At the beginning of the year, the CEIRP team reviewed its security and privacy policies. To address some gaps that were identified in the audit, an independent IT was hired to provide 24-hour tech support and to update the organization’s operational systems and security processes.
Another priority for the team was to improve our relationship with administrators, union leaders and members. One important initiative stemming from this project was a targeted email for members aged 65 to 71, informing them of their continued options within the CEIRP and the free financial advisors provided by Canada Life.
The second half of the year continued to be busy as the office staff focused on helping members make the most of their membership. This included promoting the importance of selecting a beneficiary and how to manage their account selections on the My Canada Life At Work website.
A three-year communication strategy was implemented at the beginning of 2024 with the aim of improving members’ engagement and understanding of CEIRP. Over the past year, the following tactics were achieved in support of this strategy:
Videos and podcasts: This year, seven bilingual animated videos were produced (including the 2023 Annual Report summary video). Topics included: an introduction to CEIRP, how to open a CEIRP account, how to make a budget and financial conversations for couples. For the first time, we collaborated with corporate partner FirstOntario Credit Union to produce a video podcast.
Member Spotlight: Featured five members from DGC and IATSE who shared their career stories and CEIRP experiences. The articles were featured as Canada Life account statement inserts, the CEIRP newsletters and on the website.
Social media communities: CEIRP added a LinkedIn community to its established Facebook and Instagram communities. These pages grew steadily and in the last quarter saw increases in reach and audience growth.
CEIRP Website: The year-over-year activity improved: visitors, views, sessions and duration all increased collectively by 30%.
Member Onboarding Presentations: This pilot project, designed to help members get the most of their CEIRP membership, was launched in October. This will be a monthly presentation and the subject matter will evolve in 2025.
Collaboration with Guilds: Each month, we are working with DGC National by providing CEIRP content that is distributed to members through DGC regional newsletters.
This successful program, featuring a prize wheel with six colours, was launched at the IATSE Canadian Convention in October. The purpose was to engage delegates in a conversation about CEIRP and financial literacy. Each participant would first fill out a short survey to rate their understanding of both topics. Next, they would spin the wheel. Whichever colour it landed on would determine the subject (one of the CEIRP accounts i.e. RRSP, RESP, TFSA, etc.), just like in Trivial Pursuit. A correct answer resulted in a swag prize, like a small bottle of syrup, CEIRP-branded pens and mints. Wrong answers would initiate financial literacy discussions and the opportunity to spin again.
Seventy-five delegates participated and the follow up survey received a 35% response rate (sent to 48 delegates and 17 replied). Among those that responded, 61% said their knowledge of CEIRP had improved, 22% felt that their general understanding of personal finance had improved and 94% would recommend the game to their colleagues.
Trivial Pursuit Prize Wheel Pre-game Survey
Using a Likert Scale, 1 being the lowest, 5 being highest:
- How would you rate your understanding of CEIRP?
- How would you rate your financial literacy?
Customized Plan Presentations
Our goal is to help members to have a better understanding of the plan and all it has to offer. By continuously working with participating local unions and guilds, CEIRP provides customized presentations that suit their needs. We encourage Executive Boards and office staff to attend, especially as they represent members’ interests.
Stay In Touch
- Staying up to date with important information in the CEIRP monthly newsletter and messages from Canada Life
- By discovering the wealth of information on the CEIRP website, www.ceirp.ca
- By following CEIRP’s social media communities Facebook , Instagram and LinkedIn.
Contact Sarah Twomey, CEIRP’s communications and education specialist, with comments or suggestions for specific financial topics, at [email protected].
Keeping your personal information up to date
Staying up-to-date protects your privacy and allows you to continue receiving important plan news. Update your personal information, including your email address, by accessing your account on mycanadalifeatwork.com or by calling 1-855-729-1839, Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. ET.
