| BenefitsLink Retirement Plans Newsletter |   |
March 18, 2005
Today's sponsor: Employee Benefits Institute of America (EBIA)
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
Explore the Seven Wonders of the Benefits Compliance World No HR or benefits professional's library would be complete without EBIA's compliance manuals. Save time and steer clear of compliance traps by joining thousands of professionals who rely on our manuals. "I know I can rely on your manuals, above and beyond any others, to be clear, concise, easy to understand, and accurate!" -Director of Flexible Benefits Learn more about EBIA's seven compliance manuals today!
(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
Putting too Much Stock in Your Company –- A 401(k) Plan Investment Problem
Excerpt: "NASD is issuing this Alert because it is concerned that employees who have the opportunity to invest in company stock may be concentrating too much of their retirement savings in a single security. NASD is particularly concerned about employees who have all or most of their 401(k) assets in their employer's stock. If the stock takes a beating, so does your retirement savings." (National Association of Securities Dealers)
Conseco Settles Employees' ERISA Class Action Lawsuit for Stock Losses
Excerpt: "Conseco Inc. has agreed to pay $10 million to settle a class action lawsuit filed by employees alleging violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act for stock losses related to company's 2002 bankrup.tcy." (Business Insurance)
When It Comes to Managing Retirement Fund Investments, Many People Simply Can't
Excerpt: "The 'ownership society' envisioned by President Bush from creating private Social Security accounts is nothing new for the many millions of Americans already investing for their retirement through 401(k) plans and the like. One thing stands out from that quarter-century of experience: those with relatively large surpluses to invest - mostly those at the top of the earnings ladder - have managed to amass enough wealth to serve them well in retirement." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Delta Air Lines Seeks Pension Relief: CEO, Union, Retirees Lobby Congress
Excerpt: "Delta Air Lines, its employees and other carriers with traditional retirement plans are asking Congress for more relief from pension fund contributions they say will swamp sinking cash reserves. In a letter to several members of Congress, Delta and its allies seek more flexibility to avoid a big jump in cash payments." (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution; one-time registration required)
Ten Fiduciary Duties: Obligations in Overseeing the Company Retirement Plan
Excerpt: "Here is a general overview of fiduciary duties and responsibilities. It is not intended to be a detailed or comprehensive list, but it will give you a starting point in understanding the issues." (401khelpcenter.com)
Retirement, the Federal Thrift Plan Way Compared to Private Accounts in Social Security
Excerpt: "The federal thrift plan ... differs in an essential way from the retirement accounts that the president wants to carve out of Social Security. The thrift accounts are on top of a generous fixed pension for federal employees, while President Bush's proposal envisions the accounts replacing a substantial part of Social Security's fixed pension. The thrift system functions like a 401(k)-type plan." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Overview: Legislative Developments Affecting Retirement Provision in Uzbekistan
Excerpt: "A number of legislative developments that have taken place recently or are in the pipeline will have a bearing on benefit provision in Uzbekistan. On 3 December 2004, a number of changes were made to the tax code which included a modification to the tax treatment of severance payments. Whereas previously these had been paid without deduction of income tax, now the tax-free element is restricted to payments not exceeding twelve times the minimum wage." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)
Bob Pozen's Social Security Fix -- Plan Would Combine Investment Accounts, Selective Benefit Cuts
Excerpt: "He starts out with the proposition that Social Security's long-term deficit has to be whittled down, a course that will involve painful steps. ''We have to stop talking about desserts and start talking about spinach,' said Pozen in a telephone interview yesterday." (The Boston Globe)
On Texas' Coast, a Laboratory for Private Accounts
Excerpt: "As governor of Texas, George W. Bush had an up-close look at what many advocates of individual Social Security investment accounts consider a laboratory for how such a system might work: Galveston County's retirement system. In 1981 officials in Galveston, ... opted out of Social Security along with neighboring Brazoria and Matagorda Counties and chose instead to plunge their county governments into the unknown territory of offering private retirement accounts." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Milliman's Benefits Perspectives: Current Issues in Employee Benefits, Winter 2004-2005 (PDF)
8 pages. Includes articles titled: Taking Stock of Option Expensing, A Guide to Administrative Costs for Defined Contribution Plans, and, Obstacles Thwarting Improved Treatment for Depression. (Milliman)
Company Breached Fiduciary Duty by Sending Incorrect Benefits Statements
Excerpt: "[T]he appellate court remanded the question of an appropriate equitable remedy: 'In making its determination, the court should consider whether the pension Schaffer would have received had he returned to [Westinghouse] would have been greater than the combined value of the pension he will receive from [the subsidiary] for his fifteen plus years of service at the [Georgia] site and the pension he will receive from [Westinghouse] for his nineteen years at the [South Carolina] facility.'" (Cypen & Cypen)
Employer Did Not Violate ERISA By Outsourcing Employees To Another Company: Eighth Circuit
Excerpt: "An employer that outsourced a number of employees to another company did not interfere with the employees' rights to pension benefits in violation of ERISA Sec. 510. This was the ruling of the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Register, et al. v. Honeywell Federal Manufacturing & Technologies, LLC (No. 04-1902)." (Spencer Benefits Reports)
International Employee Equity Plans: Legal Update, March 14, 2005 (PDF)
23 pages. This edition covers the countries of Argentina, Denmark, Can.ada, Brazil, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, United Kingdom, and the United States. (Gardner Carton & Douglas LLP)
Overview: DOL Provides Guidance on USERRA Rights Notice Requirement (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "On March 10, 2005, the Department of Labor ('DOL') released a poster that employers may display to satisfy the requirement, also effective on March 10, 2005, that employers notify employees of their rights and benefits under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act ('USERRA')." (Pillsbury Winthrop LLP)
Newly Posted Events
Form 5500 Workshop
in Mississippi on May 25, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Form 5500 Workshop
in Louisiana on May 25, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Form 5500 Workshop
in New York on May 25, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Newly Posted Press Releases
ERIC Presses Congress to Make Permanent a 2001 Expiring Tax Relief Provision
(ERIC (ERISA Industry Committee))
Diann Howland, Council Vice President, Retirement Policy, To Become Pension Director of Senate HELP Committee
(American Benefits Council)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
401K Internal Wholesaler
for ADP Retirement Services
in NJ
Product Manager
for ICMA Retirement Corporation
in DC
Client Services Manager
for Zenith Administrators
in AZ
401k/DC Administrator
for The LAMCO Group, Inc.
in FL, NY, RI
ERISA Paralegal / Consultant
for The LAMCO Group, Inc.
in FL, NY, RI
Systems Manager
for National Automobile Dealers Association Retirement Administrators Inc
in
Due Diligence Analysts
for The Rosen Group, leader in placement of Benefits Professionals
in PA
Compliance Analyst
for Emjay/Great-West Life
in WI
International Benefits Consultant
for Apple Computer, Inc.
in CA
Administrative Associate
for Administrative Services, LLC
in AL
Third Party Administration Manager
for Administrative Services, LLC
in AL
Investment Marketing Writer
for Diversified Investment Advisors
in NY
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Search BenefitsLink
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
Copyright 2005 BenefitsLink.com, Inc.; except that you may reprint this newsletter in full (including this sentence) without obtaining our permission.
Published by:
BenefitsLink.com, Inc.
https://benefitslink.com/about.html
1298 Minnesota Avenue, Suite H
Winter Park FL 32789
(407) 644-4146
Fax: (407) 644-2151
Editor and Publisher: David Rhett Baker, J.D.
Housekeeping: