|
 Printer Friendly Version
Release Date: September 27, 2007
Release Number: 07-152-CHI
Contact Name: Brad Mitchell
Phone Number: 312.353.6976
Chicago – The U.S. Department of Labor has
sued two fiduciaries of Miicro Inc., Chicago, for failing to forward
employee contributions to the company’s pension plan and to segregate
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 assets held on behalf of a retirement plan’s
participants,” said Steve Haugen, director of the department’s
regional office in Chicago of the Employee Benefits Security
Administration (EBSA).
The lawsuit alleges that fiduciaries Dawn Matthews, president of
Miicro, and Terry Brown, vice-president, failed to remit contributions
deducted from workers’ paychecks from February through August of 2004,
to the retirement plan accounts as required by the Employee Retirement
Income Security Act (ERISA). Those funds were commingled with Miicro
corporate accounts.
The suit seeks to require that the two make good any losses to the
plan resulting from their fiduciary breaches, permanently enjoin
Matthews and Brown from serving as fiduciaries on ERISA covered plans,
and to correct any prohibited transactions. The suit also asks that the
court appoint an independent fiduciary to terminate the plan and
distribute its assets to the participants and beneficiaries, if
necessary, and require that Matthews and Brown obtain a fidelity bond
adequate to meet the requirements of ERISA.
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 Chicago, resulted from
an investigation conducted by the regional office in Chicago of EBSA.
Employers and workers can reach EBSA’s office in Chicago at
312.353.6976 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 2006, EBSA achieved monetary results of
$1.4 billion related to pension, 401(k), health and other benefits for
millions of American workers and their families.
(Chao v. Miicro)
Civil Action No. 07-C-5420
U.S. Department of Labor news releases are accessible on the
Department's Newsroom
page. The information in this news release will be made available
in alternate format upon request (large print, Braille, audio tape or
disc) from the COAST office. Please specify which news release when
placing your request at 202.693.7828 or TTY 202.693.7755. The U.S.
Department of Labor is committed to providing America's employers and
employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply
with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit the
Department's Compliance
Assistance page.
|
