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Updates To Pension Plans And Other Financial Topics, And Celebrating Our Community!



Ontario has passed many new rules and legislations for 2023, that directly affect both the employer and employee’s financing.

Changes include updates to pension plans, property investment, TSFAs, and more.

You can find the extensive list below:

1) Canada Pension Plans (CPP) contributions will be increased to 5.95%
2) Foreign investors will not be able to buy residential properties in Canada for the next 2 years
3) The TFSA annual limit for 2023 will be increased to $6,500.
4) Ontario pharmacists will have the power to prescribe medications for 13 types of “common ailments,” without the need for the patient to see a doctor.
5) Changes to employment insurance rates will result in workers paying a maximum annual EI premium of $1,002.45 in 2023, compared to $952.74 in 2022.

We keep all of these changes in mind when providing you with the best benefits and retirement savings plans in the business.

Reach out to one of our benefits experts today, to begin working with us so we can guide you through these situations.

This month’s Community Spotlight is an organization near and dear to our hearts! Although we are mostly over the time of working from home, there were a few years when pets would provide crucial interaction to your employees!

That’s why we want to celebrate the great Toronto Humane Society for everything they do for our furry friends, which are so st a shelter; they also provide rehoming servicesscientific research, as well as influences and eliminates the root causes of animal vulnerability, and more.

What are the primary goals of the organization? 
Through their strategic plan, they aim to:
1) Influence and eliminate the root causes of animal vulnerability, rather than react to it;
2) Expand our core animal welfare programs and services to offer both animal and human welfare programs and services;
3) Become a living lab of learning, best practices, and knowledge exchange;
4) Reach beyond Toronto’s city borders to provide programs, services, and impact;
5) Becoming a self-sufficient, revenue-based social enterprise.
Learn about Toronto Humane Society’s future plans, barriers they have overcome, and more in the full interview below!
1) Tell us about Toronto Humane Society and what you do.
  • Toronto Humane Society is like no other. Emboldened by a plan that calls us to address the root causes of animal vulnerability, the community that is Toronto Humane Society, provides:
    • Sheltering and Rehoming programs to act as a temporary safe haven for those pets who are looking for a new family, partnering with agencies across North America to reduce an unnecessary loss of life through relocation and adoption
    • Accessible Pet Support Services, Spay/Neuter and Preventive Wellness care, Training and Behaviour consultations, A Pet Parent Support (advice) Network, Pet Food Banks and Temporary Urgent Foster Care for those owners who are experiencing temporary crisis.
    • Industry-leading science and advancement efforts to discover and share best clinical practices with other animal welfare organizations both locally and internationally, finding better approaches to care, improving the efficiency of resources and decreasing the length of stay for animals who find themselves in shelters.

2) What have been the biggest outcomes/impacts of the community you serve? 

    • The services we provide our community have helped to decrease unnecessary euthanasia within our community. Helping our community better care for their animals, has resulted in more animals receiving the care when they need it, and thus, fewer animals being euthanized.
    • Similarly, we have seen tremendous success in the management of the community cat population within Toronto. Under 20 years ago, the estimated number of community cats within the city was over 100,000. According to a recent study conducted by Toronto Humane Society, it is estimated that this number is now closer to 17,000. Partnering with other community organizations and running our full-service Trap Neuter Return Program, has allowed for the population to decrease, and fewer litters of kittens and cats entering the shelters within the city.

3) What are the biggest challenges Toronto Humane Society has faced? 

      • Toronto Humane faces challenges each day. These challenges are broad in scope, impacting nearly the entirety of the animal welfare industry and are not unique to our organization. However, they are why we exist, and each and every day we rise to the challenge to combat them.
  • Access to care: 
      • It’s no surprise that caring for animals can be costly, especially when accidents or unforeseen illnesses occur. These costs to care, create barriers to pet ownership, and prevent people from accessing the care they need for their animals.
      • At Toronto Humane Society from 2016-2020 we saw that 30% of animal surrenders occur because of the medical health of the pet and the ability to access and provide care, primarily financial. Much of the time, this occurs after a fair bit of money has already been invested in the pet’s care, however, there just wasn’t enough for the required emergency treatment or ongoing care costs.
      • To help ease this burden for Pet Parents we offer:
        • Pet Health Insurance
        • Public Veterinary Services
        • Pet Parent Support Network
        • Pet Food Bank
        • Urgent Care Program
  • Animal Homelessness: 
    • Hundreds of thousands of pets enter shelters each year in Canada. When this burden is too great, over-population challenges can lead to unnecessary loss of life for many pets in need of a home.
      • In Ontario, every year more than 40,000 animals are entering animal shelter agencies relinquished by their owners or found as strays.
    • Animal homelessness and overpopulation have been challenges we have faced since our inception in 1887. Over more than a century, we have developed many programs and services to help combat these issues, with a goal of finding and then keeping pets in loving homes.
    • We work to ensure that no animal goes without a loving home, and no animal’s life is ended needlessly.
    • Programs/Services we offer to help:
      • Pet Health Insurance
      • Public Veterinary Services
      • Pet Parent Support Network
      • Pet Food Bank
      • Urgent Care Programs

3) What are Toronto Humane Society’s goals for the future?

  • Reduce Animal Homelessness
  • Ensure access to care
  • Preserve the Human-Animal Bond

We boldly face these challenges with a multi-faceted approach. From industry-leading shelter care, training, and veterinary services to innovative, expert-led programs in temporary sheltering, accessible veterinary care, and community support programs and services. And our efforts are made greater through our outreach services and public support programs.

In the pursuit of our mission, Toronto Humane Society becomes something else. Something more than an animal shelter. We are an educational resource and support system. A voice for and provider of accessible care. We are a center of excellence. A space where best practices and new ideas meet with unyielding optimism and love for animals to create something special.  It is in the pursuit of our mission that Toronto Humane Society is like no other.

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