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Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce is giving its 1,300 financial advisors 100 million reasons to stay.

The big Toronto-based bank is offering the brokers a total of $100 million (Canadian) that would advance them as much as $300,000 in the form of loans that would be forgiven over 10 years if they remain with the firm, according to The Globe and Mail. A company spokesman didn't return our calls seeking comment on the plan, which reportedly takes effect in June.

"Top producers at the bank's brokerage division, CIBC Wood Gundy, who already make more than $1 million a year by generating more than $2 million in commissions, would be eligible for the $300,000 loan," the newspaper says. "The average financial adviser generates revenues of $867,000 for the bank, takes home $400,000 and would be able to borrow $125,000. At the low end of the scale, a new, green broker who takes home $50,000 could borrow $30,000."

CIBC competitors RBC Capital Markets and BMO Financial Group declined to comment about whether they would try and match the plan. A TD Bank Financial Group spokesman says the company doesn't offer these sorts of retention bonuses as a matter of policy.

Keeping workers happy at CIBC is no doubt a top priority. Shares of the bank have been battered over the past year on concerns about its exposure to the U.S. subprime mortgage market. The company also recently reported the second-biggest quarterly loss in its history after writing down $2.28 billion worth of subprime mortgage investments. In the earnings press release, Chief Executive Officer Gerald McCaughey called the losses "a significant disappointment and are not aligned with our strategic imperative of consistent and sustainable performance."

Business is... Good

Profit at Toronto Dominion and National Bank of Canada rose during the first quarter while the Bank of Montreal struggled, reporting a 27 percent drop in profit. Reports from Canada, though, continue to show its outperforming its neighbor to the south.

"Business investment has increased, and Canada's employment performance and wage growth have been impressive, due to both strong commodity prices and a growing service sector," Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney said during a recent speech. "Rising terms of trade alone have bolstered real disposable income per capita by 8.5 percent over the past five years, and have contributed to healthier corporate balance sheets and the continued improvement in government fiscal positions."

The superlatives kept flowing in recent data released by the government that showed a rebound in consumer confidence and unemployment at a 33 year-low. In February alone, five times more jobs were added than analysts had expected, according to Reuters. Canada created 43,000 new jobs in the month while the U.S. lost 63,000 jobs. Experts were left speechless.

"Mind boggling," Derek Burleton, senior economist at Toronto-Dominion Bank, told Reuters. "I'm obviously a little shocked right now."

"To say that today's employment numbers were stunning simply doesn't do the outcome justice," TD Bank economist Craig Alexander told the Canadian Press.

Exactly how long the good times will last remains an open question. Ken Georgetti, president of the Canadian Labor Congress, wondered in a March 7 press release: "Can this apparent strength of the job market continue when there are so many announced or expected layoffs and plant closures due to the high dollar and rising energy costs?"

Financial professionals may want to strike while the iron is hot.