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Mercer book provides expertise and insights from 20 leaders to help organizations
20 July 2009Organizations need to be sure they have the right tools, data and know-how when it comes to empowering people to perform to the best of their abilities. Providing a wealth of hands-on, practical experience, Mercer’s new book, Creating Value through...
Responsible Investment not losing steam in financial crisis
16 July 2009A significant number of mainstream investors have ”turned a corner” on how they put responsible investment into practice according to new data from the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) Initiative. There are currently over 560...
Improving credit markets deal a blow to pension plan sponsors
8 July 2009After several months of record high credit spreads, falling yields on corporate bonds and rising yields on Treasuries are having a negative impact on the funded status of pension plans, according to the latest estimates by Mercer.
Employers prefer incremental approach to health care reform
6 July 2009A survey of 329 US employers conducted by Mercer has found that a significant majority (67 percent) favor a phased-in approach to national health care reform. Only 11 percent said they favor the enactment of comprehensive reform this year, and the...
Mercer launches equity choice tool for stock option programs
23 June 2009Mercer, a leading benefits administration outsourcing provider, has recently launched “equity choice,” a new online decision-support tool. For those employers who are offering an equity exchange program, the tool provides employees with a simple...
Mercer sees defined contribution account balance recovery as a significant challenge for near retire
18 June 2009To illustrate the predicament faced by near retirees, Mercer, a leading provider of benefits administration, analyzed its defined contribution participant data for those under 30 years of age and those 55 and older. Since the end of 2007 through...
Mercer global survey: Deep workforce, benefit cuts show signs of moderating in last half of 2009
17 June 2009There are signs that deep workforce, pay and benefit cuts are moderating as businesses budget for the remainder of 2009, according to Mercer’s latest Leading Through Unprecedented Times global survey.
Health Confidence Survey underscores Americans’ readiness for comparisons of provider performance
12 June 2009Results of the 12th annual Health Confidence Survey published today by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute dramatically illustrate the readiness of most Americans to take advantage of the latest physician and hospital scorecards and...
Health of defined benefit pension plans at S&P 500 companies falls markedly in 2008
12 June 2009In 2008, the financial health of pension plans at the largest US companies worsened markedly, reversing all the gains earned this decade, with aggregate pension assets falling $310 billion short of pension liabilities, according to Mercer’s annual...
Mercer announces expanded health and benefits administration outsourcing solution
11 June 2009Mercer announced today that it is expanding its health and benefits administration outsourcing platform to offer a standardized full outsourcing solution for clients with 5,000 to 10,000 employees. Clients who utilize this solution will receive a...
Many employers still unprepared for managing HR issues related to H1N1, Mercer survey finds
10 June 2009Approximately two in five employers (41 percent) do not have a human resources (HR) policy in place for health-related emergencies, yet many acknowledge they have employees in areas where cases of Influenza A (H1N1) or “swine flu” have been...
Mercer and Putnam Announce New Service Agreement for Taft-Hartley Market
10 June 2009Mercer and Putnam Investments announced today that they have entered into an agreement effective July 1, 2009, whereby Mercer will assume responsibility for all plan-related services for existing Taft-Hartley clients previously serviced jointly by...
Arnold Milstein, MD, authors New England Journal of Medicine article on new federal curbs on hospita
8 June 2009A “Perspective” column by Mercer’s chief physician, Arnold Milstein, MD, was published today in the June 4 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine. The article, “Ending Extra Hospital Payment for ‘Never Events’ – Stronger Incentives for...
Bond markets and volatile funded status pose questions for pension plan sponsors
8 June 2009The funded status of pension plans has improved significantly since the low point of December 2008 but this improvement faltered in May, according to the latest estimates by Mercer Investment Consulting, Inc. (“Mercer”). According to the Mercer...
Is the 401(k) a success? Employers are divided.
8 June 2009Employers are divided on whether the 401(k) plan – which has become more common than the traditional pension plan – is meeting employees’ retirement savings needs, according to a recent Mercer survey.
Mercer launches major new UK initiative to manage pension financial risks
2 June 2009Mercer is launching an innovative solution into the UK market to manage pension financial risks. The new facility addresses widespread concern from trustees about the funding of their defined benefit pension plans, particularly in the face of...
Compensation outlook is mixed as companies plan pay increases for some jobs, plan to cut pay for oth
1 June 2009While companies remain focused on managing their human capital investment in the current economy, pay across jobs is becoming less consistent. Median total cash compensation (base salary and annual incentive) has increased year-over-year among some...
Institutional plans post negative first-quarter returns
1 June 2009The median corporate, public and foundation/endowment plan experienced negative investment results for the first quarter of 2009 and for the year, according to a quarterly survey of plan sponsor performance by Mercer. The worldwide recession...
Severance policies remain unchanged despite employers’ cost-cutting efforts, Mercer survey shows
26 May 2009Over the past year and a half, two-thirds of organizations have had to reduce their workforces as a result of the recession. Despite this prevalence, one in four organizations does not have a severance policy and 70 percent of employers with a...
Kevin L. Murphy, Jr., joins Mercer’s managed pharmacy consulting business
21 May 2009Mercer has appointed Kevin L. Murphy, Jr., as a senior consultant in the managed pharmacy group of its health and benefits business.
Mercer launches health care claims advocacy service for health and benefits administration clients
19 May 2009Mercer, a leading global provider of benefits outsourcing, announced today that it has launched a new health care claims advocacy service as an additional offering for its health and benefits administration clients. By adding this new feature,...
Equity markets post losses for the first quarter of 2009, Mercer reports
13 May 2009Mercer’s first-quarter 2009 Defined Contribution Universe Summary found losses in all equity markets during the period. The quarterly report analyzes returns of various funds and helps institutional investors evaluate their mutual fund managers’...
Mercer adds Sharan Mitchell Carlisle and Steve Gordon as market leaders for its outsourcing business
12 May 2009Mercer, a leading global provider of benefits outsourcing, announced today that it has named Sharan Mitchell Carlisle as Market Leader – Great Lakes region and Steve Gordon as Market Leader – Southeast region for its outsourcing business, effective...
Funded status of US company pension plans continues recovery – deficit reduces to $167 billion
8 May 2009Pension plan deficits shrank in April for the second successive month on the back of improving equity markets and stable bond yields according to the latest estimates by Mercer.
Mercer announces new hires to support expanded distribution of Defined Contribution services
7 May 2009Mercer announced today that it has hired six professionals to further strengthen the expanded distribution of its comprehensive defined contribution (DC) administration services to plan sponsors with 500 or more employees. This group of all new...
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