Labor Dept. suing contractor over retirement fund

The U.S. Department of Labor is suing an Oakdale contracting company and its president in federal court in Fresno for failing to make more than $108,000 in contributions to employees’ 401(k) retirement savings plan over a four-year period.

The complaint filed last month in the federal Eastern District Court states that the company was required to make “mandatory employer prevailing wage contributions” to the savings plan for workers who were employed on public works construction projects with prevailing-wage contracts. Instead, Labor Department attorneys allege that the company retained the money and used it for other purposes in violation of the Employees Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.

The lawsuit seeks restoration of the money to the savings plan plus interest; removal of James Brunk and Brunk Industries as the managers of the plan; and appointment of a new, independent administrator to terminate the plan and distribute the assets.

This story was originally published July 13, 2015 at 3:12 PM with the headline "Labor Dept. suing contractor over retirement fund."