| BenefitsLink Retirement Plans Newsletter |   |
November 24, 2003 - 13,525 subscribers
Today's sponsor: PenChecks, Inc.
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
PENCHECKS, INC. MARKS 10,000th LOST PARTICIPANT IRA PenChecks, Inc. has established over 10,000 IRA accounts for missing participants. The PenChecks IRA, established just 2 years ago, is rapidly becoming the vehicle of choice to hold missing participant benefits. Penchecks, Inc. provides complete distribution services to qualified plans, including lump sum distributions, monthly annuity payments, election forms, checks, ACH transfers, tax withholding in all states, direct rollovers, and Forms 1099-R and 945.
(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
Covered Compensation Tables for 2004 (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "This revenue ruling provides tables of covered compensation under ยง 401(l)(5)(E) ... for the 2004 plan year. Section 401(l)(5)(E)(i) defines covered compensation with respect to an employee, as the average of the contribution and benefit bases in effect under section 230 of the Social Security Act (the 'Act') for each year in the 35-year period ending with the year in which the employee attains social security retirement age." (Internal Revenue Service)
Wal-Mart Stops Using Putnam Funds in 401(k) Plan
Excerpt: "Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the largest U.S. private sector employer, said on Friday it stopped using two Putnam Investments mutual funds for employees' 401(k) retirement plan accounts, after regulators accused the fund manager of improper trading." (Reuters via Washington Post)
NASD Wants More Disclosure
Excerpt: "Mutual fund companies would be required to more fully disclose expenses and performance data in advertisements and sales brochures under a proposal issued [Nov. 21] by the securities industry's main self-regulatory body." (Washington Post)
Government, Union Pension Fund Trustees Turn Attention to Climate Change
Excerpt: "Buoyed by their efforts to instill corporate governance reforms on Wall Street, the caretakers of several state and union pension funds took on another challenge Friday: global climate change." (AP via Washington Post)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Web-Based HR Technology Increases Productivity
Web-based self-service has reduced the administrative workload of human resources departments and improved data accuracy and timeliness, according to a survey recently released by Towers Perrin. The survey, 2003 HR Service Delivery Survey Report, found that 60% of employers' administrative workload has been reduced due to employee self-service, and 47% of companies have eased HR's administrative burden due to manager self-service. (Spencer Benefits Reports)
Lawsuits by Pension Fund Trustees Up Ante in Supermarket Strike Over Health, Pension Costs
Excerpt: "For the past six weeks, Safeway Inc. has been grappling with an employee strike at its nearly 300 grocery stores in Southern California. Now the supermarket giant is under attack from shareholders." (AP via Washington Post)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Employee Benefits Sales Representative
for Great-West Healthcare
in MI, NY, OH, WA
Group Health Insurance Sales/Account Management
for Great-West Healthcare
in GA, NC, NJ, NY, OH
Sr. Retirement Programs Specialist
for Providence Health System
in WA
Administrative Assistant
for ERISA Services, Inc.
in TN
Immediate Opening for a Defined Contribution Qualified Plan Administrator
for Pension Works, Inc.
in VT
Newly Posted Events
Pass or Fail? What Consumers Don't Know About Retirement Income and What the Media Has Been Telling Them
Nationwide on December 1, 2003
presented by Employee Benefit News
Regaining Control of Health Care Costs: A Hewitt Financial Executives Briefing
in Texas on December 10, 2003
presented by Hewitt Associates LLC
Regaining Control of Health Care Costs: A Hewitt Financial Executives Briefing
in Texas on December 11, 2003
presented by Hewitt Associates LLC
SouthWest Benefits Association/Internal Revenue Service 15th Annual Employee Benefits Conference
in Texas on November 15, 2004
presented by SouthWest Benefits Association
SouthWest Benefits Association/Internal Revenue Service Plan Administrator Skills Workshop
in Texas on February 6, 2004
presented by SouthWest Benefits Association
SouthWest Benefits Association 29th Annual Conference
in Texas on May 19, 2004
presented by SouthWest Benefits Association
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Search BenefitsLink
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research
- Employee Benefits Library
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