Cant get benefits

[Guest DONFRYER]

I need to know where I can get help. My former employer is refusing to sign

my transfer form (he has had it since July 9, 2002) because he is angry with

me. In April 2001, he attempted to cancel retirement contributions on a

money purchase pension plan so he could use another former employee's funds as

incentive to get him to come back and testify on work-related court cases he

was involved with during his employment. He wanted this employee to sign an

agreement wherein if he came back and testified during an 18-month period, he

would receive his expected retirement contribution of $7,000 less taxes (since

it wasn't deposited in the retirement account). My former employer promised

to pay me my retirement funds, $5,000 (in checks, less taxes) for that year

he was going to cancel because he didn't want me to be affected by his

dealings with this other former employee who refused to sign the agreement

when he found out he wouldn't be receiving his retirement funds. According to

the plan summary, we were owed the money as long as we worked more than 500

hours in the fiscal year, which we both did. I resigned from the company

because I was expected to lie to this other employee, who was still working

out his resignation notice, regarding the fact that I was going to receive my

money and he wasn't since he didn't sign the agreement. That would have been

illegal for me to receive "retirement" funds if the other employee didn't

receive them. And now, after hiring attorneys, our former employer deposited

the funds in our accounts in March, 2002, which is the month it has always

been deposited, like nothing ever happened, like no memo was ever issued in

April 2001 stating that the retirement contributions for the fiscal year

ending June 30, 2001 would be zero. I believe he made the contributions

because I resigned and he believed I would notify the other former employee

of what transpired. Note: In April 2001, the company only had 4 employees,

including the owner, me and the other employee who resigned in March 2001 and

worked until the end of April 2001. It is a family-owned small business. I

was a 10-year loyal employee and the other employee who resigned is a second

cousin to the owner. I need to know the legal issues related to the transfer

of funds to my new employer's retirement plan and are our attorneys' fees

[RCK]

I think that the Department of Labor is very handy in situations like this. Go to their website at dol.gov and find out the phone number for your nearest office. Call them and explain the problem. You are going to have to be able to distill the situation into a couple of key points if you expect them to follow this. I think that it comes down to the fact that you are entitled to receive a distribution and have not gotten it yet. You should have an SPD that explains when you are entitled to receive the distribution.

Contacting them is usually more effective if you can find someone else in the same situation, but you may not have that opportunity.

Good Luck.

RCK