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Release Date: April 5, 2006
Release Number: 06-524-CHI
Contact Name: Brad Mitchell
Phone Number: 312.353.6976
Cincinnati, Ohio - The U.S. Department of
Labor sued in federal district court in Cincinnati to appoint an
independent trustee for the abandoned retirement plan of locally-based
Cincinnati Armature Works Inc., which ceased doing business in October
2004.
The department’s lawsuit seeks appointment of an
independent fiduciary to administer the plan, distribute its assets to
plan participants and beneficiaries and oversee the plan’s
termination. As of August 2005, the plan had nine participants and
approximately $265,700 in assets. The suit seeks to replace the company’s
former owner, Walter Zuberbuhler, who served as a fiduciary when the
company was dissolved.
“When a plan is abandoned, so are the workers who
invested in it,” said Joseph Menez, regional director for the Labor
Department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA). “We
took this legal action so the plan will be properly administered and its
participants can access the funds that rightly belong to them.”
The department’s suit resulted from an
investigation conducted by EBSA’s Cincinnati regional office.
Employers and workers can contact that office at 617.565.9600 or EBSA’s
toll-free number, 1.866.444.EBSA (3272), for help with any problems
relating to private-sector pension and health plans. In fiscal year
2005, EBSA achieved monetary results of $1.7 billion related to pension,
401(k), health and other benefits for millions of American workers and
their families.
(Chao v. Zuberbuhler)
Civil Action No. 1:06CV169
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