Mid-Year Labor & Employment Law Update: Key Developments and Compliance Strategies
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Gag Clause Prohibitions
DOL Restructures: OFCCP on the Chopping Block as Opinion Letters Expand - #WorkforceWednesday® - Employment Law This Week®
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Forfeitures Under Fire
Independent Contractor Rule, EEO-1 Reporting, and New York Labor Law Amendment - #WorkforceWednesday® - Employment Law This Week®
Navigating Contractor vs. Employee Classification
Work This Way: A Labor & Employment Law Podcast | Episode 45: New Leadership at Employment-Related Federal Agencies with David Dubberly of Maynard Nexsen
Multijurisdictional Employers, Part 1: Independent Contractors vs. Employees
Non-Competes Eased, Anti-DEI Rule Blocked, Contractor Rule in Limbo - Employment Law This Week® - #WorkforceWednesday®
#WorkforceWednesday®: New DOL Leadership, NLRB Quorum, EEOC Enforcement Priorities - Employment Law This Week®
The Labor Law Insider: What's Next for Labor Law Under the Trump Administration, Part I
The Implications of President Trump's EO on Gender Ideology: What's the Tea in L&E?
#WorkforceWednesday®: Federal Agencies Begin Compliance Efforts Under Trump Administration - Employment Law This Week®
Fostering Teamwork: Lessons From the Dynamic Duo of Monsters, Inc. — Hiring to Firing Podcast
#WorkforceWednesday®: Employment Law Changes Under President Trump - Employment Law This Week®
Employment Law Now VIII-158 - DEI Developments and Executive Coaching
Now Is the Time to Conduct I-9 Audits: What's the Tea in L&E?
Employment Law Now VIII-157 - Top 5 L&E Issues to Watch in 2025
Constangy Clips Ep. 6 - Federal Court Blocks DOL Rule: What Employers Need to Know
The Labor Law Insider - Elections Have Consequences: Labor Law Changes Anticipated Under Trump Administration, Part II
In a lawsuit currently under appeal at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the court has been asked to decide whether the plan administrator violated its fiduciary duties of prudence and loyalty under ERISA when...more
It’s not often you see the U.S. Department of Labor jumping into the legal ring to back plan sponsors, but when they do, you know something bigger is at stake than just one plan participant’s gripe. That’s exactly what...more
If you’re a 401(k) plan sponsor, you don’t need to be an ERISA expert—you just need to avoid doing dumb things. Here are a few quick tips to help you stay on the right side of your fiduciary duties and keep your participants...more
Since September 2023, plaintiffs have filed numerous class action lawsuits alleging that the use of 401(k) forfeitures to offset future employer contributions violates the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974...more
On May 28, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) took two major steps that signal a shift in its approach to fiduciary oversight under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA)....more
When you sponsor a 401(k) plan, you’re not just handing out a shiny benefit to help employees save for retirement. You’re stepping into a role that carries legal weight, personal responsibility, and—if you’re not careful—...more
On June 2, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced a significant expansion of its compliance assistance tools by launching an Opinion Letter Program across five key enforcement agencies, including the Employee...more
The Department of Labor recently issued Field Assistance Bulletin (FAB) 2025-01, which amounts to a temporary enforcement policy around the transfer of small retirement plan benefits — think $1,000 or less — to state...more
On May 15, 2025 the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury (the “Departments”) announced they will temporarily not enforce their new standards published under the mental health parity Final Rule last...more
Late last year, the Department of Labor (DOL) launched the public Retirement Savings Lost and Found Database. Created as part of SECURE 2.0, the DOL hopes that the database will serve as a centralized location to help missing...more
I n his inauguration speech, Franklin Delano Roosevelt said that “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” 401(k) plan sponsors have more to fear than fear itself except the problem is that they’re unaware that they...more
SECURE 2.0 introduced many changes for retirement plans, including updated disclosure requirements for a defined benefit plan’s annual funding notice (AFN). These updated AFN disclosure requirements apply for all plan years...more
401(k) plans are like intricate, complex, machines. There are many moving parts, in dealing with participants, plan sponsors, and Third Party Administrators (TPAs). That means errors happen. However, as an ERISA attorney,...more
Only weeks after the principal effective date for the final 2024 federal mental health parity rules for employer-sponsored health benefit plans, those rules—and specifically some key features that are frustrating...more
Even as high-priority issues such as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), immigration, and Ukraine take center stage in the first months of the new presidential administration, many employers are wondering what the next...more
As a plan fiduciary, I still can’t believe it. A Third Party Administrator (TPA) we terminated was trying to hold us up for valuations and a Form 5500 we paid for, as part of, annual administration. It was $80,000....more
On January 14, 2025, the DOL issued Field Assistance Bulletin (FAB) 2025-01, providing sponsors and administrators of ongoing defined contribution plans with a new option for missing participant balances of $1,000 or less:...more
The most recent wave of ERISA litigation is focused on the use of plan forfeitures in 401(k) plans, with the newest case, Armenta v. WillScot Mobile Mini Holdings Corp. being filed just last week. Although, for years, many...more
As explained in my last post, Things I Worry About (7), the DOL’s EBSA has a number of programs that can restore benefits to plans and participants. Those include: - Civil investigations. - Criminal investigations. -...more
We always tell plan sponsors to keep ERISA records for 7 years. In this day and age of scanning and PDFs, should mean you don’t need to throw anything out if it’s saved online. The reason I hate for plan sponsors to throw...more
On January 14, 2025, the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) within the Department of Labor (DOL) updated its Voluntary Fiduciary Compliance Program (VFCP). The VFCP allows plan officials to correct certain...more
Retirement plan fiduciaries have a new option for handling small benefit payments owed to missing participants and beneficiaries thanks to a temporary enforcement policy announced by the Department of Labor (“DOL”) earlier...more
The DOL updated its voluntary fiduciary correction program (“VFCP”) which was introduced over 20 years ago to allow plan sponsors to corrected enumerated fiduciary breaches. The amended VFCP now allows for self-correction of...more
The United States Department of Labor (DOL) has released Field Assistance Bulletin 2025-01 (the Bulletin), providing much-needed guidance to fiduciaries of retirement plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security...more
The DOL’s EBSA has a number of programs that can restore benefits to plans and participants. Those include: - Civil investigations. - Criminal investigations. - Informal compliant resolutions. - Correction programs. ...more