Can someone please clarify? US versus Canada?

[Miamoo]

I am trying to understand this.  Trying to explain to my husband some differences that I've read about here.  Note that he works for a company based in Montreal offering no benefits whatsoever to their US employees.  (We live in Illinois, USA) None.  Zip.  Zilch. 

(But Montreal calls day and night and flies the husband to all provinces to clean up their mistakes - make peace with their valued clients.)

Here - US - we may or may not have a lower tax bracket but we have to fund our own retirement plan, health insurance is very expensive.

I thought I read in some post that in Canada there was a requirement of some sort that the employer had to pay into what is the equivalent of a 401k here.  Can someone clarify?  And expound on the other benefits realized?

Looking for some sort of an explanation, and some sort of leverage (is that the right word?) - bargaining power?

He just made 10 years with this company and his anniversary gift is (whenever we receive it, if we do) a "Mont Blanc" pen.  Woo Hoo.

[Prairie Gal]

I think you are thinking of the Canada Pension Plan, which is mandatory for employees here in Canada. We are deducted 4.95% of our gross pay, and the employer matches it.

I am not sure how it would work for a Canadian company with American employees.

[scrubbyfish]

+1 about the CPP.

The Canadian equivalent to the 401k, specifically, is the Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP). A few different rules, but very similar. Some Canadian employers offer group plans, and employer contributions, but neither is mandatory.

I wonder if your hubby is on contract, rather than "employed by". Contract workers are entitled to almost no benefits, including to Canadians/people living in Canada. Most of my work has been contract, for large and small companies alike, so I've had no CPP deductions, no RRSP arrangements, no Employment Insurance, no maternity leave/coverage (had to work right up to and from the birth), no group health insurance, etc.

Contract usually pays higher because we need to be able to fund this kind of stuff -or equivalents to these, like personal savings accounts for living between contracts- on our own. That should definitely be a point of negotiation, especially considering the health insurance premiums you face in the US. (In BC, Canada, we pay premiums for the "free", limited provincial program, and then additional premiums for further health coverage if we want that too. Some employers offer group plans, and sometimes coverage of premiums, on the latter.)

I wonder if there's a way you guys can research the typical contract rates for his type of work/availability/hours, and go in to negotiations with that. Maybe ads on Monster.ca for similar?

[scrubbyfish]

I wonder if there's a way you guys can research the typical contract rates for his type of work/availability/hours...

...or, the pay received by his company's "employees" (those entitled to and receiving benefits) and the benefits received by those. Contract rates should be at least equal to an equivalent employee's pay, PLUS amounts to compensate for the lack of benefits.

[TerriM]

You guys sound like you're getting a bad deal there.    He should be getting paid extra both for the travel, lack of 401K and any like insurance benefits.  Are you paying taxes both in US and Canada?

[Spondulix]

No benefits stinks, but are you having to pay Quebec taxes? You might be dodging a huge bullet if you're not.

[Spondulix]

Cathy I don't know how I missed your post above! Actually, that's really helpful info as I just did a gig in Canada last month (under $10k CAD. Whew!)

[Spondulix]

Thanks for clarifying - that's also very helpful!!

[Kaspian]

I thought I read in some post that in Canada there was a requirement of some sort that the employer had to pay into what is the equivalent of a 401k here.  Can someone clarify?  And expound on the other benefits realized?

What you probably heard about (because it was in the news a few months ago) that Ontario is starting a new mandatory "Ontario Retirement Pension Plan".  Anybody without a defined pension through work will be required to pay into this new fund with some contributed by the employer. (If you live in Ontario.)  ....Yeah, nobody here was saving at all.  When questioned, they thought that the Canadian Pension Plan and Old Age Security were enough to cover their needs (when all those were designed for was as a supplement to an RRSP.)

Here's the info and a very, very tragic infographic.  https://www.ontario.ca/government/ontario-retirement-pension-plan