News Flash: California Employer Pays For Retirement Plan Violations

As part of its ongoing ERISA enforcement, the Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration recently investigated Walnut, Calif.-based Avacon Corporation’s 401(k) ERISA compliance. As a result of the investigation, the PWBA filed acomplaint, charging that four Avacon plan officials and trustees had failed to forward employee contributions to the plan in a timely fashion. During the delays, which ranged from 39 to 228 days, plan participants lost almost $6,344 in interest. Avacon also allegedly never forwarded an additional $38,611 it had withheld from paychecks. The company and officials have now agreed to shell out $56,239 to settle the charges. Look for an article in the May issue explaining how you can avoid ERISA penalties for violations by participating in a new PWBA amnesty program.