Maximus Rose Living Benefits is partnering with Indigenous Workplace Wellness (IWW) to redesign solutions to meet the needs of those in the Indigenous workforce. 

Employee benefits and risk management are usually presented in pre-packaged plans and services that don't always meet the needs of the company or their employees, said the Northern Ontario-based insurance broker. This is especially true for Indigenous groups, where Western medicine isn't always the answer, and a balanced approach – including Indigenous healing – is more suitable.

Crucial to create culturally responsive solutions 

With this in mind, Maximus Rose Living Benefits got together with IWW to establish a strong network of partners (Acclaim Ability Management, Noojimo Health, and 7 Generations Wealth) to create culturally responsive solutions for Indigenous people. 

"Maximus Rose is extremely proud to be working with IWW to support Indigenous employers and employees," said Chris Sanderson, Operations Manager at Maximus Rose. "We've always gone above and beyond the traditional 'one-size-fits-all' benefits approach, but it has become abundantly clear that as an industry, we need to do more. This is why we have committed to learning and supporting the Indigenous community through alternative ways of living, healing and working." 

Through transparency of costs and education of services, Maximus Rose and IWW work with employers and employees to establish their specific employment health needs. Together their goal is to create a balance between western medicine and traditional Indigenous healing approaches, including access to Indigenous counsellors and culturally relevant care such as funding for traditional medicines. 

"We are excited for the opportunity to partner with Maximus Rose to champion this program with their clients," said Justin Lemieux of IWW. "It's important for Indigenous employees to have access to benefit solutions that honour indigenous ways of being, knowing and doing."