| The BenefitsLink Newsletter - Retirement Plans Edition |  |
November 2, 2001 - 12,382 subscribers
Today's sponsor: RetireGuard - MassMutual
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(Help BenefitsLink to provide this newsletter at no charge to you -- our sponsors pay our way. Remember to visit them periodically; we try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
Chrysler Suspends 401(k) Matching Contributions
Excerpt: "DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler unit will offer more employees early retirement and suspend 401(k) matching payments in a further effort to cut costs, a spokesman for the automaker said." (Associated Press via Excite News)
2001 Plan Year: Year-End Compliance Reminders for Defined Contribution Plan Sponsors (PDF)
Excerpt: "Every year, defined contribution plan sponsors must make sure their plans meet certain compliance requirements, including those listed below. This checklist identifies the materials you need to review and will help you track their completion." (CIGNA's Pension Analysts)
How to Advise 401(K) Participants In the Current Climate
Excerpt: "Many stunned employees are frankly not thinking about their 401(k) plans right now. That's as it should be. If, as a result of some slightly misleading statistics, however, they start lining up at your door wondering what to do with their 401(k) funds, here's what you should tell them ..." (IOMA's Report on Managing Benefits Plans)
Despite Litigation Risks, Firms Resist Stock Caps
Excerpt: "Although some employees stung by market downturns are suing over the performance of company stock held in their retirement plans, plan providers are resisting calls to restrict the sale and award of those assets." (BenefitNews.com)
Analysis: IRS Publishes Model Amendments for EGTRRA (PDF)
Excerpt: "These amendment requirements apply to sponsors of all qualified defined benefit and defined contribution plans, including governmental plans and church plans that do not elect to be covered by ERISA. They do not apply to tax-sheltered annuity plans." (CIGNA's Pension Analyst)
Terrorist Attacks Affect Retirement Plans: Employers Review USERRA Responsibilities (PDF)
Excerpt: "All employers must comply with USERRA (although some special rules apply to federal employees). There are still many unresolved issues with respect to the administration of USERRA provisions. Below is a review of the USERRA provisions that affect retirement plans." (CIGNA's Pension Analyst)
Supreme Court Denies Certiorari in Several Employee Benefit Cases
Excerpt: "On the first day of its new session, the Supreme Court denied review of a number of employee benefit-related cases. Among others, the high court denied review of cases involving fiduciary breach claims, ERISA preemption issues, and standard of review questions." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Managing Ownership Complexity
Excerpt: "[L]eaders in employee owned companies are constantly called upon to define this strange new organizational arrangement from both economic and moral angles. What follows are some helpful hints for beleaguered leaders." (Foundation for Enterprise Development)
Stock Incentives From a Shareholder's Perspective
Excerpt: "With the recent record gain from the exercise of stock options by Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, we thought we would take a look at the changing trends of executive compensation and the potential impacts on companies and shareholders. There has always been a tug-of-war between management and shareholders, officially known as 'agency costs' in business school texts." (Foundation for Enterprise Development)
Equity Compensation in Troubled Times
Excerpt: "This article focuses on a particular type of equity compensation plan that is well suited to be a substitute for or a supplement to stock options, and that works effectively both in good markets and bad. Performance award plans have been around for many years, and have been used to great effect by many companies in lieu of or in combination with stock options." (Foundation for Enterprise Development)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings (Post Yours!)
| Pension Account Executive | for Diversified Investment Advisors in IL |
| Retirement Plan Administrator | for San Diego Pension Consultants, Inc. in CA |
| Employee Benefits Relationship Manager | for BB&T Branch Banking and Trust in GA |
| Institutional Trust Sales Manager | for BB&T Branch Banking and Trust in NC |
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Copyright 2001 BenefitsLink.com, Inc., but you may freely distribute this email newsletter in whole. This newsletter is edited by David Rhett Baker, J.D.
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