Labor Department Sues Officers of Lansing, Michigan Business To Restore Delinquent Contributions to Company’s Retirement Savings Plan

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Lansing, Michigan - The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Allen Christian and Peggy Christian, officers of Omnitec Architectural Specialties, Inc., Lansing, Michigan, for failing to forward employee contributions to the company’s pension plan and to segregate the plan contributions from the general operating assets of the company.

“The department will act when plan fiduciaries fail to carry out their duty to protect the retirement plan assets held on behalf of participants,” said Joseph Menez, director of the department’s Cincinnati regional office of the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA).

The lawsuit alleges that despite the fact that employee contributions were deducted from workers’ paychecks, the contributions were not remitted to the retirement savings plan from January 2001 to July 11, 2003, in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). Owner and company president Allen Christian, and company secretary/treasurer Peggy Christian are fiduciaries of the plan.

The suit seeks to requires the two to restore to the plan all contributions plus interest and to remove them as plan fiduciaries. The suit also asks that the court appoint an independent fiduciary to administer the plan and obtain a fidelity bond, which the defendants had failed to do.

Employers with similar problems, who are not yet the subject of an investigation by EBSA, may be eligible to participate in the department’s Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP). Participation in the VFCP requires employers to make workers whole but allows them to avoid EBSA enforcement actions and civil penalties as well as any applicable excise taxes. For more information about the VFCP, see www.dol.gov/ebsa.

The suit, filed in federal district court in Michigan, resulted from an investigation conducted by the Detroit district office of EBSA. Employers and workers can reach the Cincinnati regional office at 859.578.4680 or through EBSA’s toll-free number, 1.866.444.EBSA (3272), for help with problems relating to private-sector retirement and health plans. In fiscal year 2005, EBSA achieved monetary results of $1.7 billion related to pension, 401(k), health and other benefits of millions of American workers and their families.

Chao v. Christian
Civil Action No. 1:06cv0752

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Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Contact Name: Brad Mitchell
Phone Number: 312.353.6976