October 2, 2012

US Labor Department sues to recover losses suffered by participants in employee stock ownership plan of Calif.-based Sierra Aluminum

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit against GreatBanc Trust Co. and Sierra Aluminum Co. in the U.S.

October 1, 2012

401(k) plan trustees sentenced to prison for embezzling more than $487,000 from Shelbyville, Ky., company

WASHINGTON − Following a plea agreement entered in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, William H. Kiser and Mary Sue Kiser, trustees of the Irotas Manufacturing Co. Inc. 401(k) Plan, have been sentenced to 15 months in prison and three years of supervised release for embezzling funds from the plan. The Kisers also have been ordered to pay restitution.

September 19, 2012

Employee Benefits Security Administration announces launch of 401(k) fee disclosure resource website

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration has announced a new 401(k) fee disclosure website as a resource for consumers. The new site, www.dol.gov/ebsa-copy/publications/understandingretirementfees.html, offers information on disclosures that, for the first time, will help workers with 401(k)-type retirement plans see what they are paying to invest their savings. It also includes new tips and tools on making smart retirement investment decisions.

September 17, 2012

US Labor Department announces easy-to-use online filing tool for plan sponsors to report service providers that fail to comply with fee disclosure rule

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration announced today that plan sponsors seeking fiduciary relief for a service provider’s failure to comply with the department’s plan-level fee disclosure rule will be able to use a new online filing system, replacing the option of electronically sending notices to a previously established email address.

September 13, 2012

ERISA Advisory Council to hold open meeting Sept. 25

WASHINGTON – A meeting of the Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans, known as the ERISA Advisory Council, will take place Sept. 25 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. EDT. The meeting is open to the public and will be held in Room 4 of Suite C-5521, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20210.

September 6, 2012

US Labor Department sues Plymouth Meeting, Pa., brokerage firm to give up more than a half-million dollars in illegal profits

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa. – The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit against defendants Dietrich & Associates Inc., an insurance brokerage firm in Plymouth Meeting, and its chief executive officer and sole shareholder, Kurt E. Dietrich, to disgorge $522,047 plus interest gained from illegal activities related to the company’s role as fiduciary to a hospital pension plan. The department’s suit is based on an investigation conducted by its Employee Benefits Security Administration that found violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

August 30, 2012

Judge orders A.B.D. Tank & Pump Co. to restore $2.7 million to worker retirement plan following US Labor Department investigation

ELMHURST, Ill. – Following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration and resulting lawsuit, a federal court has issued a default judgment against Elmhurst-based A.B.D. Tank & Pump Co. to restore $2,767,051 to the company’s retirement plan.  Keith Davis, the company’s president and sole owner, allegedly depleted the assets of the plan through a series of withdrawals and transfers to himself and the company from Dec. 6, 2006, through Nov. 4, 2010, in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

August 23, 2012

US Department of Labor files complaint to recover loss insurance benefit premiums for workers of Translogic Auto Carriers LLC in Bad Axe, Mich.

Date of Action: Aug, 22, 2012

Type of Action: Complaint

Names of Defendant: Ricky N. Coley of West Bloomfield, Mich.

August 23, 2012

USI Advisors of Glastonbury, Conn., agrees to pay $1.27 million to 13 defined benefit pension plans following US Labor Department investigation

BOSTON – USI Advisors Inc. has agreed to pay $1,265,608.70 to 13 pension plans to resolve alleged violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

August 21, 2012

US Department of Labor files complaint to restore losses to Spencer & Associates LLC Profit Sharing and 401(k) Plan in Springfield, Ohio

Date of Action: Aug. 21, 2012

Type of Action: Complaint

Name(s) of Defendant: Bruce E. Spencer, Tannile Elizabeth Ortiz and Paul Olzeski, as fiduciaries to the Spencer & Associates, LLC Profit Sharing and 401(k) Plan.

August 20, 2012

The Department of Labor has obtained a judgment in Solis v. Jack A. Helmick involving the Dynamis Group LLC formerly of Shelbyville, KY.

Date of Action:  August 15, 2012

Type of Action:  Consent order and judgment

Names of Defendants: Jack A. Helmick, individually and as a fiduciary to the Dynamis Group 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan & Trust

August 20, 2012

US Labor Department investigation results in funds being restored to Family Mobile Medical Retirement Plan in Merrillville, Ind.

Date of Action: Aug. 10, 2012

Type of Action: Consent order and judgment

Names of Defendant: Ben Richmond, Family Mobile Medical Services, Inc., and the Family Mobile Medical Retirement Plan

Allegations: Richmond and Family Mobile Medical Services, Inc., in their capacity as fiduciaries to the Family Mobile Medical Retirement Plan, failed to ensure that $8,965.94, in employee contributions for the period of April 1, 2008, through Dec. 31, 2008, were forwarded to the plan.

August 20, 2012

US Labor Department sues to restore more than $34 million to 2 worker pension funds of Michigan-based vehicle parts manufacturer

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued to restore more than $34 million in assets to two retirement funds of Michigan-based vehicle parts manufacturer Metavation LLC that allegedly were used in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

August 13, 2012

US Labor Department to host free retirement plan compliance assistance seminar for Charleston, SC, area small business owners Sept. 11

ATLANTA – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration will host a retirement plan compliance assistance seminar in North Charleston, S.C., on Sept. 11. The seminar is designed to help small business owners understand their fiduciary responsibilities when operating private sector retirement plans. It is free and open to the first 100 registrants.

August 3, 2012

Department of Labor files complaint against Dayton Imaging Solutions, Inc., to recover unremitted employee contributions to company’s IRA Plan

Date of Action:  Aug. 3, 2012

Type of Action: Complaint

Names of Defendant:Dayton Imaging Solutions, Inc., Bryan Belden, and the Dayton Imaging Solutions, Inc. SIMPLE IRA Plan located in Dayton, Ohio.

August 2, 2012

US Department of Labor's ERISA Advisory Council to hold public meeting Aug. 28-30

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans, also known as the ERISA Advisory Council, will meet Aug. 28-30 at Labor Department headquarters, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20210, in Room C5521-4. The meeting will run from 9 a.m. to approximately 5 p.m. on Aug. 28 and 29, and from 8:30 a.m. to approximately 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 30.

July 31, 2012

Solis v. Gary Merritt, Bemcore, Inc. and Bemcore, Inc. Incentive Plan in Dayton, Ohio

Date of Action: July 27, 2012

Type of Action: Complaint

Names of Defendants: Gary Merritt, as fiduciary to the Bemcore, Inc. Incentive Plan, Bemcore, Inc. and Bemcore, Inc. Incentive Plan in Dayton, Ohio

July 25, 2012

The Department of Labor obtains judgment to restore funds to employee benefit plans of Trotter Construction Company Inc. in Indianapolis, Ind.

Date of Action: July 20, 2012

Type of Action: Consent order and judgment

Names of Defendants: James H. Trotter, Sr.; Sylvia Trotter; Trotter Construction Company, Inc.; Trotter Development Group NC, LLC, and The Trotter Construction Company, Inc. 401(K) Plan, located in Indianapolis, Ind.

July 24, 2012

US Department of Labor files suit to recover losses to employee stock ownership plan of SJP Group

CLIFFWOOD BEACH, N.J. ‒ The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit seeking to recover losses suffered by participants in the SJP Group Inc. Employee Stock Ownership Plan. The department’s suit is based on an investigation conducted by its Employee Benefits Security Administration that found violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

July 19, 2012

US Labor Department to hold women’s retirement forum July 28 at University of Illinois-Chicago

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration will hold a free women’s retirement savings forum on Saturday, July 28, 10 a.m.–12:30 p.m. CDT, at the University of Illinois-Chicago, Student Center East Building, Illinois Room A, 750 S. Halsted St., Chicago, Ill. 60607. “What Every Woman Should Know About Retirement Savings and How to Make It Last” will be open to the public and the media.