Federal court orders defunct Milwaukee info technology company, president to restore $18K withheld from employees for medical plan

Date of Action:          March 7, 2023

Type of Action:         Employee Retirement Income Security Act default judgment

Company/Owners:    Gary Krieger, Stratagem Inc., Stratagem Inc. Group Medical Insurance Plan

Background: On March 7, 2023, Judge Lynn Adelman in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin entered a default judgment against Stratagem Inc. and Gary Krieger, the company’s president, after he failed to meet a deadline of Sept. 21, 2022, to answer a complaint filed by the U.S. Department of Labor.

The Secretary of Labor filed a lawsuit on March 21, 2022, after the department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration found the company and Krieger did not remit employees’ voluntary salary contributions to the company’s group insurance plan. The defunct info-technology company operated offices in Mequon and Milwaukee.

Resolution: Judge Adelman entered a default judgment in which Krieger, the company and its group insurance plan must restore $18,084 to the plan within 15 days. The amount represents $15,124 in employee contributions not paid to the health plan and $2,960 in lost opportunity costs for all Stratagem employees who had voluntary contributions withheld from their pay from Oct. 14, 2018 through Jan. 15, 2019.

The judgment also forbids Krieger and the company from future ERISA violations and bars them from serving as fiduciaries or service providers to any ERISA-covered employee benefit plan in the future.

Employers and workers can reach EBSA toll-free at 866-444-3272 for help with problems related to private sector retirement and health plans. Learn more about EBSA.

Docket Number: Case No.:22-cv-353