Washington – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), today announced guidance on the duties of employee benefit plan fiduciaries in light of alleged abuses involving Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC.

Syracuse, New York – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Kellogg Auto Supply Co. Inc. of Cortland, New York, and company president and general manager Richard Coates for alleged violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the federal law that protects private sector pension and employee benefit plans.

Melville, New York – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) will sponsor “Getting It Right – Know Your Fiduciary Responsibilities,” a free compliance assistance seminar, on February 12 at the Melville Marriott Long Island at 1350 Old Walt Whitman Road.

Boston – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a settlement agreement filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District Court of Massachusetts, providing for payment of nearly $115,000 in unpaid employee health claims of bankrupt Wolverine Proctor & Schwartz LLC, formerly of Merrimac, Massachusetts. After filing for bankruptcy, the company abandoned its employee health benefit plans, leaving 79 employees with significant unpaid health care costs.

Metairie, Louisiana – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) will sponsor “Getting It Right – Know Your Fiduciary Responsibilities,” a free compliance assistance seminar, on January 28 at the Four Points by Sheraton New Orleans.

Atlanta – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a default judgment in federal district court in Atlanta ordering Concrete Construction Co. of Acworth, Georgia, and its president, Craig Wagner, to restore $11,672 due to the failure of the defendants to prudently manage the funds, to the company’s 401 (k) retirement savings plan. The payment is comprised of delinquent employee contributions, uncollected employer matching contributions, and lost earnings on the employee contributions.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Tallahassee, Florida – A free health law compliance assistance seminar for employers, plan fiduciaries and plan services providers, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) and the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, will take place January 28 and 29 at the Doubletree Hotel Tallahassee, 101 South Adams St. in Tallahassee.

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

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

Washington – The U.S. Department of Labor and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) today released a new publication to help small employers understand automatic enrollment for 401(k) plans offered to their employees. Automatic Enrollment 401(k) Plans for Small Businesses provides a comprehensive overview of the advantages of starting and operating this type of 401(k) arrangement.

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

Minneapolis – The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Minneapolis to appoint an independent fiduciary to oversee the Nat Joseph Catering Inc. 401(k) Plan.

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

Atlanta – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Mark Possein and National Marketing and Entertainment Group Inc. (NMEG) in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for misusing $68,424 of plan assets to benefit the company and other entities between January 2003 and May 2005 in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

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

Atlanta – The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of South Carolina has agreed with U.S. Labor Department that Carl E. Reid may not use bankruptcy to avoid repaying $44,993 plus any lost earnings to the SIMPLE IRA plan of American Fittings Inc.

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

Mondsview, Minnesota – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Hyman Freightways Inc., formerly located in Mondsview, for allegedly abandoning its profit-sharing and 401(k) plan in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act after the company ceased operations in October 1997.

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

Atlanta – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained consent judgments restoring an additional $250,000 to the Georgia Plumbers Trade Association Health Plan in Griffin, Georgia, and requiring the payment of a $50,000 civil penalty to the federal government. Earlier this year, the court ordered restitution of more than $500,000 for losses suffered by the plan.

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

St. Amant, Louisiana – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued to appoint an independent fiduciary to manage the Highland Fabricators Inc. 401 (k) Plan in St. Amant and distribute $85,981 in assets to 38 participants of the abandoned 401(k) plan. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) requires plans be managed by a named plan fiduciary.

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

Washington —The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a final regulation implementing the department’s authority to assess civil penalties against plan administrators who fail to disclose certain documents to participants, beneficiaries and others as required by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, as amended by the Pension Protection Act (PPA).

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

Atlanta – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Business Financial Solutions Inc., which operated as Academic Financial Services, and trustees of its 401(k) plan, for alleged violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) involving delinquent employee and employer contributions owed to the plan.

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

San Francisco – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Power & Data Technology, San Jose, California, and its president to recover $39,325 and distribute the assets remaining in the company’s abandoned 401(k) profit-sharing plan. The defunct company manufactured and distributed electrical components.

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

Memphis, Tennessee – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued defunct Stephens Brothers Inc. of Memphis for abandonment of its 401(k) plan in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

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

Atlanta – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Midland Employer Services of Brentwood, Tennessee, for failing to fulfill its fiduciary duties to the company’s 401(k) plan in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).