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Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.
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Release Date: 03/25/2004
Release Number: 04-544-CHI
Contact Name: Rita D. Ford
Phone Number: 202.693.8671
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Cleveland, Ohio - The U.S. Department of Labor
sued the former trustee of the 401(k) plan of defunct White’s
Information Systems, Inc., of Cleveland, Ohio, for failing to forward to
the account contributions withheld from employees’ paychecks. |
“Plan
fiduciaries have a duty to protect the assets held in retirement plans
that are promised to participants,” said Joseph Menez, director of the
department’s Cincinnati Regional Office of the Employee Benefits
Security Administration (EBSA), which investigated the case. |
The
suit, filed in federal district court in Cleveland, alleges that James A.
White failed to forward partial contributions from two plan participants’
accounts and all contributions from a third participant’s account from
May through July 2000, in violation of the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act (ERISA). White was a plan trustee and former owner of the
company. The suit also alleges that the defendant failed to remit employee
contributions to the plan between November 1999 and July 2000 and did not
maintain a fidelity bond for the plan. |
The
department is seeking a court order appointing an independent fiduciary to
distribute retirement assets to participants and terminate the plan. The
suit also asks the court to require White to restore all losses owed to
the plan with interest, to correct all prohibited transactions and to
permanently bar him from service to any plan governed by ERISA. WISI
was a management-information consulting firm that provided computer
software services to federal and state agencies and private companies. The
401(k) plan had 20 participants and assets of $212,907, according to the
latest financial information available to the department. |
In
fiscal year 2003, EBSA achieved record monetary results of $1.4 billion
related to the pension, 401(k), health and other benefits of millions of
American workers and their families. Employers and workers can reach EBSA’s
Cincinnati Regional Office at 859.578.4680 or through EBSA’s toll-free
number, 1.866.444.EBSA (3272), for help with problems relating to
private-sector retirement and health plans. |
(Chao
v. White)
Civil Action No. 1:04CV0416 |
U.S.
Labor Department news releases are accessible on the Internet at
www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available
in alternate format upon request (large print, Braille, audio tape or
disc) from the COAST office. Please specify which news release when
placing your request at 202.693.7765 or TTY 202.693.7755. The U.S.
Department of Labor is committed to providing America's employers and
employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply
with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit
www.dol.gov/compliance. |
Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.
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