CareSuper Board

It’s our Board’s responsibility to ensure CareSuper is managed in the best interests of members. Of course, good governance is essential to that.

The CareSuper Board has adopted the standards of the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST) Governance Code, which promotes continuous improvement in governance practices and goes beyond regulatory requirements to ensure that AIST member funds champion members’ interests through a positive and ethical culture, appropriate documentation including policies, charters and processes, open and full disclosure, appropriate Board renewal, strong and relevant skills, fair and responsible remuneration, and rigorous processes for financial, risk management and investment governance. Compliance with the Code is audited annually, requiring the Fund to submit a report to AIST by September each year. We have submitted our report relating to the year ended 30 June 2020. The Code exceeds any other industry code or principles for superannuation funds.

The Board is comprised of an equal number of member and employer directors (five each) and Board decisions are made by at least a two-thirds majority.

Over the year, we welcomed two new directors - Tony Cavanagh (Member director) and Merran Kelsall (Employer director). CareSuper Board members are chosen via a rigorous process. Having been proposed by a nominating entity, such as an employer organisation or union or by the Board itself, the process includes a panel interview and assessment against a detailed statement of responsibilities, including experience, skills, qualifications and capability, as well as fitness and propriety requirements.

A skills matrix is maintained and when vacancies occur, this is used to identify any gaps and to prioritise desired criteria in the selection process. The Board evaluates its performance annually whereby Directors and members of the Executive team complete a questionnaire on factors that led to effectiveness and good governance. This process was completed in the financial year ending June 2020 and the results were used to debrief the combined group and identify issues for improvement. See the Board skills and performance matrix.

Directors during financial year 2019/20

RELATED ENTITY DISCLOSURES

The following directors and the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) have directorships or other roles with entities in which CareSuper invests or has a commercial relationship.

TERRY WETHERALL

• Councillor, Business NSW
• Director, Industry Super Australia Pty Ltd

JULIE LANDER

• Director, Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST)
• Director, Fund Executives Association Limited (FEAL)
• Director, Business Council of Cooperatives and Mutuals (BCCM)

MICHELLE GARDINER

• IFM Shareholder Advisory Board (remunerated)

DR JEREMY JOHNSON AM

• Director/Immediate Past President, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry
• Executive Council of Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI)

ROBERT POTTER

• Deputy National Secretary, ASU

BOARD OVERVIEW

BOARD COMMITTEES

To help meet its obligations and oversee certain fund operations, the Board has established several committees.

All directors are required to serve on at least one and generally two committees for which they receive a fee. The chair is a member of one committee and attends other committee meetings on an ex officio basis.

COMPLIANCE, AUDIT AND RISK MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

The Compliance, Audit and Risk Management Committee’s purpose is to assist the Board in meeting its compliance and risk management responsibilities. The committee’s main activities include:

• Internal and external audit monitoring
• Various policy document reviews
• Ongoing monitoring of all risks within CareSuper’s Risk Management Framework.

GOVERNANCE AND REMUNERATION COMMITTEE

The Governance and Remuneration Committee’s key tasks include:

• Various policy document reviews
• Ongoing monitoring of the risks designated to the committee
• Training for directors – planning for the year based on skills matrix and competency assessment
• Approval of the remuneration budget for staff, executive salaries and the remuneration structure for Directors
• Review of board and committee structures and delegations.

INVESTMENT COMMITTEE

The Investment Committee’s primary function is to monitor the implementation of CareSuper’s investment strategy and investment operations within the framework approved by the Board. It is responsible for the ongoing review of all external providers who manage CareSuper’s investments.

MEMBER AND EMPLOYER SERVICES COMMITTEE

The Member and Employer Services Committee (MESC) is responsible for overseeing:

• Our administration function, policies and services
• Our insurance management framework and strategy and the performance of outsourced providers
• CareSuper’s insurance policies
• Risk elements that may arise in relation to relevant areas
• Marketing, education and communications strategies
• Member and employer engagement strategies
• Product strategy, including significant changes to product features and benefits
• The performance of our ancillary product providers.

BENEFIT PAYMENTS COMMITTEE

The purpose of the Benefits Payments Committee is to enable the Fund to meet the need for speedy, effective and informed decisions on claims for benefits under the various insurance policies and other provisions of the Fund’s Trust Deed or relevant law. It also acts as a source of information and advice to the MESC and to the Board on detailed aspects of these functions.

BOARD AND COMMITTEE REMUNERATION

The Board brings specialist skills and experience to ensure CareSuper is professionally governed. Director remuneration is set using a total annual fee approach for both board and committee work. If a director is a chair, deputy chair or committee member, their fees reflect the additional time and commitment necessary to carry out these duties.

Committee member fees are commensurate with the number of meetings normally scheduled for each committee. Most directors serve on more than one committee. The target level of income for directors and chairs is guided by the median remuneration paid for these roles in profit-to-member funds of a similar size, taking into account funds under management, membership and contribution levels.

The Board resolved that effective 1 May 2020, Director fees be reduced by 20 per cent for the remainder of 2020, in recognition of COVID-19. This decision was made to ensure we — as a membership-based organisation — are in touch with our purpose and that our actions reflect what’s happening in the wider community.

¹ Appointed 11 December 2018. Appointed Deputy Chair 1 January 2020
² Appointed 14 August 2018
³ Appointed 1 March 2019
⁴ Appointed 1 January 2020
⁵ Appointed 1 April 2020
⁶ Ceased 31 December 2019
⁷ Ceased 31 December 2019

Compliance & risk management

We take managing our members’ super very seriously. To make sure the fund is managed openly, honestly and according to the law, we’ve established rigorous standards, policies and procedures.

The Trustee

The Trustee of CareSuper (the Fund) is CARE Super Pty Ltd (the Trustee). The Trustee’s ABN is 91 006 670 060, and its Australian financial services licence number is 235226.

The Trustee has an indemnity insurance policy in place to protect its directors from potential costs of legal action. It is a Registrable Superannuation Entity, licence number L0000956, and is authorised to offer a MySuper product. Its MySuper identification number is 98172275725867.

The Trustee’s approach to managing the Fund is detailed in its governance policies and documents. These documents include, but are not limited to, the Fund’s Trust Deed, Board and Committee Charters and the Trustee Company’s Constitution. They outline the powers and responsibilities vested in the Trustee, as well as the rules for how the Trustee operates. This includes provisions for the appointment and removal of directors. The Board Charter outlines the principle functions, policies and operations of the CareSuper Board.

Changes to the constitution

We did not make changes to our Constitution this year.

Changes to the trust deed

The Trust Deed was amended to enable the Perpetual Successor Fund Transfer (SFT) and for compliance with the Protecting Your Super (PYS) and Putting Members’ Interests First (PMIF) requirements.

The following amendments were made:

• Removal of the age restriction on membership to take effect from the date of the Deed, to ensure that the Perpetual successor fund transfer (SFT) could take place, as it had a member under the age of 15.
• Include an express power to transfer benefits to the Commissioner of Taxation, to take effect from 1 July 2019. This is the only change necessary in response to the Protecting Your Super (PYS) and Putting Members’ Interests First (PMIF) requirements.

Tax policy

CareSuper has a Taxation Policy that is reviewed at least annually. The taxation objective is to ensure that the Fund complies with its statutory taxation reporting obligations and is managed in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations.

The taxation philosophy of the Trustee is to:

• Maintain a conservative level of tax risk
• Maximise the after-tax returns to members, and
• Comply with the prevailing revenue laws in all relevant jurisdictions.

Privacy policy

We did not make any changes to our Privacy Policy this year.

View our Privacy Policy

Compliance

CareSuper is a regulated superannuation fund under the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (Cth). The Trustee will continue to operate in accordance with all statutory requirements of superannuation, taxation and other relevant legislation.

Risk management framework

As part of our overall governance strategy, we’ve developed a risk management framework that covers risks across all operations. The framework is actively managed and reviewed by the Board and committees. The material risks covered by this framework include investment governance, liquidity, insurance, fraud, operations, strategy and outsourcing. In addition, ongoing monitoring includes a risk radar to identify any potential future risks.

View our governance documents

Legislative update

The Federal Government introduced several changes to superannuation this financial year.

EARLY RELEASE OF SUPERANNUATION (ERS) SCHEME

The temporary Early Release of Superannuation (ERS) scheme was introduced in April 2020 to allow individuals experiencing severe financial hardship due to widespread business shutdowns caused by COVID-19 to access up to $10,000 of their superannuation in financial year 2019/20 and a further $10,000 in 2020/21.

Between April and end June 2020 we assisted 25,311 members access up to $10,000 of their super and paid $194,223,817, 94% within Australian Taxation Office (ATO) legislated timeframes. The average amount paid per member was $7,677. The scheme required new systems and processes to facilitate the payments, and additional resources at our contact centre to service affected members. We worked closely with the ATO to process the payments as efficiently as possible while maintaining stringent security and anti-fraud measures.

CHANGES TO INSURANCE LAWS

There were important changes to insurance in super including the Protecting Your Super (PYS) legislation implemented in July 2019, and the Putting Members’ Interests First (PMIF) legislation commenced 1 April 2020. These laws require us to cancel insurance for inactive members who have not received a contribution or transfer-in for 16 consecutive months, unless they have told us they want to keep their cover. We were also required to cancel standard insurance cover on 1 April 2020 for members who, between 1 November 2019 and 31 March 2020, had not reached an account balance of at least $6,000 and had not elected to keep their cover. Affected members received communications about this. Effective from 1 April 2020, we can only provide automatic insurance cover to members who are age 25 or older and have an account balance that has reached $6,000 at least once. Members can elect to receive standard cover without requiring health evidence and before they meet the above age and account balance requirements, if it’s right for them. Other conditions may apply as outlined in the Insurance Guide.

Read further about changes to insurance.

CHANGES TO INACTIVE SUPER ACCOUNTS WITH LOW BALANCES

As part of the Protecting Your Superannuation legislation, all super funds are required to close inactive super (accumulation) accounts with a balance less than $6,000 and transfer the balance in the account to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). This means that if members are uncontactable or inactive, and they have a balance of less than $6000, their account may be transferred to the ATO under this policy. This usually happens each year in April and October. If the member’s account is transferred to the ATO due to this policy, any insurance cover they have with CareSuper will end and they will no longer be a member of CareSuper.

To update your details and see when your last contribution was made to your super log in to MemberOnline.

REDUCTION TO MINIMUM PENSION DRAWDOWN RATES

Account-based pension and transition to retirement (TTR) pension members can temporarily reduce their pension payments by 50 per cent in the 2019/20 and 2020/21 financial years. This temporary measure was implemented due to the COVID-19 pandemic and aims to minimise the impact on members’ account balances when share markets are under pressure.

INSURANCE IN SUPERANNUATION CODE OF PRACTICE

As part of our commitment to delivering best practice products and services to our members, CareSuper has signed up to the Insurance in Superannuation Code of Practice which sets an industry-wide standard for insurance in super. It will ensure it’s easier for members to understand their insurance options and find information about their cover, reduce communication timeframes, make it easier for members to make changes to their cover, and receive more assistance during the claims process.

We’re working to ensure we’re ready to commence operating under the Code as soon as possible. All requirements under the Code will be met for our core product by 31 December 2020, under which most of our members are covered. Where there are exceptions to Code compliance we will publish our rationale for these instances, and any steps we are taking to improve our Code compliance. We will be fully compliant with the Code by 31 Dec 2021.

Read more about the Code here. See what we’ve done this year to educate our members about insurance in super.

Corporate responsibility and sustainability

We’re in super for the long term and recognise our broader responsibility to our employees, stakeholders, the community and the environment. We understand that the way we operate and invest not only affects our members’ financial outcomes, but also the environmental, social and economic conditions of their later years and those of future generations.

INVESTING RESPONSIBLY

While it’s our job to maximise investment returns for members over the long term, how we achieve our returns is also important. Our Responsible Investing Policy outlines how we manage environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks and opportunities.

We:

• Require our investment managers to consider ESG factors when selecting and holding investments. This includes a requirement for them to identify and assess climate change risks and opportunities in their investment analysis. Evaluating investment managers on their ESG practices is an integral part of our manager appointment, monitoring and review process.
  2019/20 Report: In the past year, we carried out 41 full manager ESG assessments across six asset classes.
• Exercise our voting rights at company meetings and use our influence to support positive corporate behaviours and drive improved ESG practices.
  2019/20 Report: We voted at more than 1120 shareholder meetings and voted against more than 1150 resolutions. See how we voted.
• Participate in collaborative initiatives, most notably as a member of the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI), which engages directly with Australian companies on ESG issues. The key engagement themes include climate change, board diversity, corporate governance, labour and human rights, and corporate culture.
  2019/20 Report: In the past year, ACSI has held more than 260 engagement meetings with ASX300 companies on behalf of CareSuper and other member funds.
• Have been a signatory to the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) since 2006.
  2019/20 Report: We reported against the six principles of the PRI and have been awarded A+ for our responsible investment practices on Strategy & Governance, Listed Equity and Listed Equity Active Ownership by the PRI based on its recent assessment.
• Invest in projects and businesses that contribute to the broader community. These include schools, healthcare, renewable energy and water-related investments.
• We aim to exclude tobacco manufacturing companies from all our portfolios and are a signatory to the Tobacco Free Finance Pledge.
• Monitor CareSuper’s investments on an ongoing basis.

Joining forces for change

To share knowledge, grow awareness and support ESG initiatives, we work with the following organisations:

Industry leading

We have Infinity recognition from superannuation experts, SuperRatings. This rating recognises super funds that lead the industry in sustainable behaviour and are committed to responsible investment principles.

Climate Change

We believe the best way to address the risks of Climate Change is through co-ordinated global co-operation and action. As global investors, we have a role to play. Our Climate change Position Statement outlines our actions to address the investment risks and opportunities of climate change. We’ll continue to monitor emerging risks, research and market practices on climate change and respond appropriately in our investment activities.

Our commitment to effective stewardship

We’re a proud signatory of the Australian Asset Owner Stewardship Code (the Code). This Code was developed in 2018 by asset owners and coordinated by the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI).

The aim of the Code is to improve the quality and transparency of stewardship activities in Australia. Stewardship means we’ll exercise our ownership rights in a manner that protects and enhances long-term investment values by promoting sustainable and responsible practices in the companies in which we invest.

As part of the Code, we publicly report against six key principles. Find out more in our Stewardship Statement.

Investing in the future

We look for investments that not only offer good returns, but are sustainable both financially and environmentally, generate jobs, foster innovation and contribute to a more productive economy.

Investing sustainably is a priority for many of our members, which is why we offer a dedicated investment option that specifically seeks to respond to social and environmental concerns while delivering strong long-term returns. Our Sustainable Balanced option not only meets our ESG criteria, but focuses on investments that drive positive change towards a more sustainable and inclusive world. It was relaunched in 2019 with a restructure of managers and investments.

Watch this video to find out more

Learn more about the SBO

OPERATING SUSTAINABLY

Our operational footprint is small, but we’re always looking for ways to reduce our use of resources and minimise waste.

We have continued with various sustainability measures, including:

• Our comprehensive recycling system
• Encouraging staff to use online communications and reporting systems to reduce travel and printing
• Energy efficient workspaces through use of green energy
• Improving the energy efficiency of our offices
• Discounted travel passes for staff to use public transport, and
• Purchasing carbon offsets for travel.

2019/20 Report: This year we became one of the first super funds to be certified Carbon Neutral by the Australian Government through Climate Active – Australia’s collective initiative for climate action. To reduce emissions, we have implemented sustainability and carbon neutral initiatives across our day-to-day business operations including improving energy efficiencies in our offices and recycling and waste management. In Melbourne, we have moved to new premises that have the highest sustainability ratings. In addition, we invest in global carbon offset projects including wind farms and regeneration projects. These projects provide additional benefits such as improving biodiversity in Australia, creating jobs and improving access to education for girls in developing countries which are in line with the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals.

ADDRESSING MODERN SLAVERY IN THE LABOUR SUPPLY CHAIN

The Australian Modern Slavery Act 2018, enacted in 2019, guides organisations on reporting modern slavery risks in their operations and supply chains.

2019/20: We’ve been developing a modern slavery framework that includes a road map of activities to be implemented over the next three years. The Investments team reviewed survey responses received from our investment managers and assessed how modern slavery risks were managed in their business operations and investment activities. Those responses will assist us to identify the high-risk areas we must focus on addressing.

EXHIBITING THE HIGHEST STANDARDS OF GOVERNANCE

We respect human rights, oppose corruption, and abide by both the letter and spirit of applicable laws, rules and regulations across our operations and investments

2019/20 Report: We continue to adopt AIST’s Governance Code. Adherence to the Code requires annual reporting and compliance review, and we’ve submitted our 2020 report.

ENHANCING THE EXPERIENCE OF MEMBERS AND EMPLOYERS

Our goal is to build enduring relationships with our members and employers by continually adding value and improving customer experience. We measure member and employer satisfaction through regular surveys and report on a wide range of metrics.

2019/20 Report: Our net promoter score (NPS) was +52, and our last satisfaction survey showed that over 87% of super members and 95% of pension members surveyed were satisfied with CareSuper. We also launched a working group to develop an enhanced engagement and retention strategy to be implemented across all business areas.

ENGAGING AND COLLABORATING WITH INDUSTRY-LEADING PARTNERS

We apply rigorous due diligence processes before appointing (or when reviewing) material outsourced providers and other business partners, in accordance with our Outsourcing Policy. As part of our due diligence process, we ask our partners to provide annual attestations about their relevant credentials.

See our list of service providers

CONTRIBUTING TO THE WIDER COMMUNITY

We exist as part of a broader community and so do our members. So, while as a profit-to-members fund we don’t donate money to charities, we provide opportunities for personal donations to selected causes and for personal commitments to volunteering.

2019/20 Report: Community engagement continued in 2020 with our staff encouraged to donate blood and participate in community events, such as Movember where we raised $5360 to support men’s health. We also proudly supported and participated in the Mother’s Day Classic as a National Silver sponsor —held virtually for the first time due to COVID-19 — to raise money for breast cancer research. Our CEO and the CareSuper team raised an impressive fundraising total of more than $18,000.

Several staff also contributed to the wider industry through membership of policy committees and participation in public forums and education events.

BUILDING STRONGER RELATIONSHIPS

Superannuation has historically been known for its low member engagement and awareness, and high industry competition. To support the ‘affinity’ pillar within our business strategy, we proactively engage with our members and employers to promote the importance of super, educate them and improve our relationships with them. We also offer general, limited, comprehensive and complex financial advice to help members set financial goals and put strategies in place to help them achieve a positive financial future.

2019/20 Report: Our Relationships and Growth team played an integral role in supporting our members, employers and the Fund throughout the year, particularly around the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 2500 members sought advice from the financial planning team, including 450 in April alone. Our Client Partnership team carried out 3,012 meetings in-person or virtually with members and employers, and conducted 346 workplace seminars to support members. They continued to secure default status from new employers - despite the more challenging economic circumstances. Finally, our Outbound team spoke to more than 10,507 members about their super over the phone and made 9,209 calls to welcome new members.

EDUCATING AND ENGAGING MEMBERS

In line with our objective to help our members achieve their goals in life, we take responsibility to educate, inform and engage them on superannuation and related topics so that they can make better financial decisions and achieve their desired outcomes. Educational information is available via several channels ranging from face-to-face engagement at workplaces, through seminars or webinars, our website, MemberOnline, direct mail and email communication.

2019/20 Report: We had 2,462 attendees at 49 CareSuper events held across Australia, and invested time transitioning our events program online to ensure we could continue to educate and engage with our members despite the government-enforced lockdowns due to COVID-19. Our members visited our online superannuation calculators over 16,000 times. We developed a COVID-19 presentation that was delivered to business groups, workplaces and members to improve understanding of investment market changes, the early release of super scheme and other government support available. It also outlined steps members can take to improve their financial position after they get back on their feet, if they are affected by job loss or reduced hours due to COVID-19. To further support these initiatives, we launched the Education Hub as an online resource to assist members of all ages better understand their super and other finance-related topics - allowing them to learn in their own time, at their own pace.

OUR VALUED PARTNERS

A robustly managed partnership program enables us to engage with current and prospective members and our key employer groups. Partnerships are vital for us to improve engagement around superannuation among members and employers, raise our profile and brand as a trusted industry super fund, and importantly build and sustain member numbers and funds under management (FUM). This increased scale helps us deliver more competitive products and services to members, for example through more competitive fees.

Here’s a list of organisations we partnered with this year.

Business Australia (NSW Business Chamber)

Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI)

Canberra Business Chamber

ACTU Member Connect

Melbourne Victory

ASU Australian Services Union- National

ASU Australian Services Union - VIC Division

Women in Super Mother's Day Classic

ACCI Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry - Business Leader Dinner

AFL Canberra

BCCM Annual Summit

Australian Medical Association (AMA)*

Australian HR Institute (AHRI)

*We ceased our partnership with AMA during financial year 2020.