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Release Date: Monday, April 26, 1999
Release Number: USDL: III-99-04-26-031
Contact Name: GLORIA
DELLA
Phone Number: (202) 219-8921 |
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The U. S. Department of Labor has sued now-defunct Ro-Cel
Electronics Inc. of Pittsburgh and the trustees of the company’s 401(k)
plan for improperly failing to timely deposit employee contributions into the
plan. |
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Ro-Cel, an electronic alarm and security firm, created the plan in
1994 to accept voluntary employee contributions and employer contributions.
Although Ro-Cel ceased operations in 1997, the plan has not been
terminated. |
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Employee contributions funded an annuity to pay retirement
benefits for as many as 40 participants. Defendants Thomas Mannering Jr. —
the owner of Ro-Cel — and Donald Rosenberger served both as trustees and
plan administrators of the 401(k) plan at the time of the improper
actions. |
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According to the lawsuit, the trustees violated the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act by allegedly withholding pension contributions
from employee paychecks from 1994 to 1996 but failed to timely remit the money
to the plan. The defendants also were alleged to have commingled plan money
with the assets of the company. |
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The lawsuit seeks a court order removing the defendants from their
positions with the plan, appointing an independent fiduciary to manage the
401(k) plan and requiring them to reimburse the plan with interest for any
losses. The department also asked the court to permanently bar the trustees
from serving any plan governed by ERISA, to offset their pension accounts for
any losses to the plan and to redistribute the pension accounts of Mannering
and Rosenberger to other participants. |
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This lawsuit, filed Fri., April 23, 1999, in federal district
court in Pittsburgh, resulted from an investigation conducted by the
Philadelphia Regional Office of the Pension and Welfare Benefits
Administration. PWBA conducts investigations into alleged violations of
ERISA. |
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(Herman v. Mannering)
Civil Action No. No. 99-82J |
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U.S. Department of
Labor news releases are accessible on the Internet. The information in this
news release will be made available in alternate format upon request (large
print, Braille, audio tape or disc) from the Central Office for Assistive
Services and Technology. Please specify which news release when placing your
request. Call 202.693.7773 or TTY 202.693.7775. |
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