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Release Date: September 27, 2006
Release Number: 06-1272-CHI
Contact Name: Brad Mitchell
Phone Number: 312.353.6976

Labor Department Sues to Appoint Independent Trustee for Abandoned Savings and Investment Plan

Detroit, Michigan - The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit in federal district court in Detroit to appoint an independent trustee for the abandoned savings and investment plan of Michigan Pumping Service Inc., Trenton, Michigan. The company ceased doing business in 2003 after being sold to a new owner.

The suit 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 July 18, 2005, the plan had eight participants and $37,307 in assets. The suit seeks to replace former owner William Hartsock Jr., who was the plan’s fiduciary at the time the company was sold. The Michigan Pumping Service Inc. Employees’ Savings and Investment Plan was not transferred as part of the sale.

“When a plan is abandoned, so are the workers who invested in it,” said Joseph Menez, regional director for the 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 office. Employers and workers can contact that office at 859.578.4680 or EBSA’s toll free number, 1.866.444.EBSA (3272), for help with any problems relating to private-sector pension and health plans.

(Chao v. Hartsock)
Civil Action No. 2:06-cv-14226

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