| BenefitsLink Retirement Plans Newsletter |   |
November 29, 2005
Today's sponsor: DATAIR Employee Benefit Systems, Inc.
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| Software for DC/401(k) Plan Administration |
| DATAIR's IMPROVED BENEFIT ADMINISTRATION SOFTWARE for 401(k), Profit Sharing and all other Defined Contribution plans. Designed for administrators and consultants.
This Windows system features many important enhancements including flexible input for employee data, share and dollar accounting; redesigned easy-to-read report formats, a transaction database for time-weighting of allocations; electronic anniversary notification and data collection; and unlimited investment and source definitions. The system also allows for great flexibility in setting up graded class allocation (cross-tested new comparability) plans. Training and support included. For free demo versions and pricing, contact sales@datair.com or call 1-888-328-2474. |
| (Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor) |
Kmart Workers and Retirees in Pension Deal Over Class-Action Lawsuit
Excerpt: "As many as 150,000 employees and retirees of the former Kmart Corp. would share $11.75 million in a proposed settlement of a lawsuit against ex-company officials over the investment of pension funds in Kmart's now worthless stock." (AP via The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Opinion: Pension Guarantees Should Rest with Companies
Excerpt: "Any pension overhaul should not allow airlines off the hook by allowing them extra time to fully fund their pension plans." (Muskogee Daily Phoenix)
Overview: Senate-Passed Pension Reform Bill Contains Special Airline Relief
Excerpt: "Two provisions granting special relief to airlines were adopted as floor amendments. One amendment, sponsored by Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) would provide a 20-year period for plans maintained by commercial airlines to amortize their pension liabilities." (CCH INCORPORATED)
Pensions Unzipped as Stews Stripped
Excerpt: "'Tis the season for calendars, and the grabber this holiday season is the 'Stewardesses Stripped (of their Pension?)' calendar for 2006. It features five gorgeous 50-plus women in the buff, covered with enough feathers to permit display in the kitchen but showing enough skin to get public attention." (The Washington Post; one-time registration required)
Witness Asks IRS to Improve Protections for Electronic Pension Plan Consents
Excerpt: "One commenter on the proposed regulations had claimed that the written record retention requirements were burdensome, Chalfie noted. She said that retirement plans are already required to preserve large amounts of paperwork, and that this is a necessary requirement, regardless of the burden created." (CCH INCORPORATED)
Total Retirement Income at Large Companies: The Real Deal -- A March 2003 Study
Excerpt: "Concerns and misinformation about retirement income adequacy can have a number of negative implications for employers. Employees' poor perceptions about the adequacy of their retirement income and, by implication, about their employer plans undermine the value that employers receive by sponsoring these plans and, in effect, diminishes employers' overall 'return on investment' in these programs." (Hewitt Associates)
Workers Sue Utility Owner Over Retirement Savings
Excerpt: "Employees of Southern Co. are suing the employer for mismanagement of their retirement savings." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)
Tips on Securing Fiduciary Liability Insurance
Excerpt: "Given that an ERISA fiduciary can be held personally liable for plan losses that result from a breach or from the breaches of other fiduciaries, it is prudent to determine carefully how you are protected in the event a problem under ERISA arises." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)
Blair's U.K. Pension Data Contradict Other Government Numbers
Excerpt: "Figures on the public sector pension liabilities issued by U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair are contradicted by more detailed numbers put out by the Treasury three weeks ago. " (Bloomberg)
'Retire at 60' UK Pension Deal Not Sealed Yet
Excerpt: "A deal on pensions for UK public sector workers reached last month by the government may be in doubt, despite assurances that the deal would not be torn up." (Insurance Business Review Online)
Italian Cabinet OKs Pension Reform Measure
Excerpt: "The Italian government has given its blessing to a long-awaited pension reform program, but then put the whole thing off by delaying implementation to 2008." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)
UK Pension Working 'Well' but the Future Might Not be Bright, According to Aon Consulting Report
Excerpt: "The UK's pension system is 'performing comparatively well' among other European Union nations, but that doesn't give the British government any room to rest on its laurels, a new research report asserted." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)
Multinationals Increasingly Turn to Pension Pooling
Excerpt: "A survey by Deloitte & Touche LLP shows that 80% of multinational companies are considering pension pooling solutions. In a press release on the survey, Deloitte head of pension pooling Gavin Bullock said, '... 20% of these were planning to [implement pension pooling] within the next 12 months and a further 33% in the following year.'" (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)
Video: Financial Planning and Retirement Discussion, November 16, 2005
Michael Tanner discusses Social Security and retirement issues on CNBC's Street Signs. (CNBC via Cato Institute)
Interdisciplinary Review: Preretirement Influences on Attitudes and Decisions Regarding Retirement
Excerpt: "The Pension Section Research Team is pleased to make available the results of this literature search that explores pre-retirement influences on attitudes and decisions regarding retirement. The research was conducted by Linda Smith Brothers, currently a Ph.D. Candidate at the University of Wisconsin -- Madison." (Society of Actuaries)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Knudson Decision Doesn't Limit Plan Right to Recoup Benefit Overpayments by Reducing Future Benefits
Excerpt: "While the Knudson case may have upset the apple cart for plans seeking to enforce reimbursement rights through ERISA lawsuits, this decision is persuasive that Knudson does not limit a plan's ability to recoup overpayments through benefit reductions (provided that the plan documents expressly authorize it)." (Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc.)
Ohio Legislator Says Same-Sex Partner Benefits Illegal
Excerpt: "Ohio State Representative Tom Brinkman, Jr. has sued the Miami University of Ohio saying its offering of health care benefits to same-sex partners violates a state constitutional amendment." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)
Opinion: Grading the President's Tax Reform Panel's Plan
Excerpt: "If these reforms are implemented with transition rules that don't give away the store, our tax system will be more efficient and, in many ways, more equitable. That's the good news. The bad news is that even were the Panel's proposals adopted, our tax system would remain complex, expensive to administer, highly inimical to working, and still rather inimical to saving." (Laurence J. Kotlikoff via National Center for Policy Analysis.)
What Do Plan Sponsors Need to Do Between Now and December 31st?
The chart outlines the Plan or Program, the Action required, and the Deadline. (Hanson, Bridgett, Marcus, Vlahos & Rudy, LLP)
Newly Posted Events
Healthcare Provider Requirements under New Bankruptcy Code
Nationwide on December 15, 2005
presented by Beard Group, Inc.
Newly Posted Press Releases
Race, Ethnicity, and Retirement Plan Participation
(Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI))
Wolters Kluwer Financial Services - Bankers Systems Inc. Presents Online Demo: IRA Management Center
(Bankers Systems, Inc.)
Two Step Software Delivers Complete Stock Plan Visibility With The New Capitalization Dashboard
(Two-Step Software, Inc.)
CPI Provides Roth Deferral Contribution Option To Plan Sponsors
(CPI Qualified Plan Consultants, Inc.)
Continuum Selects Health Risk Assessment Partner
(Continuum)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Enrolled Actuary
for National Retirement Services, Inc.
in CA
401(k) Recordkeeping Associate
for NRECA
in VA
Human Resources Benefits Associate
for The D. E. Shaw group
in NY
401(k) Plan Administrator
for Northeast Planning Services, Inc.
in MA
Technical Education Consultant (telecommute)
for American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA)
in ANY STATE, VA
Sales Representative
for Navigator Resources
in MO, WA
Retirement Plan Consultant
for MandMarblestone, P.C.
in PA
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.
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