DOL Archives - Page 6 of 29 - EMPLOYEE BENEFITS BLOG

Full Disclosure Required: Lifetime Income Estimates on Defined Contribution Plan Benefit Statements

by Lisa Loesel, Joseph K. Urwitz and McDermott Will & Emery | Feb 9, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Retirement Plans

The Department of Labor provided interim guidance on the new required annual lifetime income disclosures to participants in defined contribution plans, including plans covered under section 401(k) or 403(b) of the Internal Revenue Code, profit-sharing plans and employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs). The Lifetime Income Disclosure Rule is currently scheduled to go into effect on September 18, 2021. Given this timeframe, sponsors of defined contribution plans should start planning for these new disclosure requirements now.

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EEOC Proposes New Rules on Wellness Programs

by Jacob Mattinson and Sarah Raaii | Jan 26, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Privacy and Data Security

On January 7, 2021, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued proposed guidance regarding employer-sponsored wellness programs and the level of incentives employers may offer employees who participate in these programs in the form of two proposed rules. On January 20, 2021, the Biden administration ordered agencies to immediately withdraw most unpublished rules, including the EEOC proposed rules. Agencies may not issue any new regulations until they can be reviewed and approved by agency or department heads appointed or designated by President Biden.

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Consolidated Appropriations Act: Health and Welfare Benefits Provisions

by Jacob Mattinson and Sarah Raaii | Jan 20, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

The Consolidated Appropriations Act (the Act) was signed into law by the president on December 27, 2020, and includes significant health and welfare benefits provisions that affect group health plans and health insurance issuers. The Act is the most comprehensive single piece of legislation to impact group health plans since the Affordable Care Act.

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Will the Biden Administration Upend Workplace Law?

by McDermott Will & Emery | Jan 5, 2021 | Employment, Labor

Joe Biden’s ascendance to the presidency not only spells doom for many of the Trump administration’s business-friendly employment policies; it also may place established tenets of federal labor law on the chopping block. Biden may bring with him to the White House an ambitious pro-labor platform aimed at giving workers and unions a leg up after four years in which the Trump administration moved the legal needle sharply in employers’ direction.

A recent article in Law360, featuring McDermott partner Ron Holland, outlines four areas that labor and employment lawyers should watch after the Biden transition.

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Final Rule for Selecting Retirement Plan Investments Leaves “ESG” Behind

by Brian Tiemann and McDermott Will & Emery | Dec 17, 2020 | Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans

In recent guidance, the Department of Labor clarified the retirement plan standards for environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) investing without mentioning the term ESG. The new guidance provides that, when selecting and monitoring plan investments, an Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) fiduciary must never sacrifice investment returns, take on additional investment risk or pay higher fees to promote non-pecuniary benefits or goals.

Teal Trujillo, an incoming associate in our Chicago office, also contributed to this On the Subject.

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Agencies Issue Final Employer Healthcare Price Transparency Rule

by Jacob Mattinson and Sarah Raaii | Dec 10, 2020 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

On October 29, 2020, the US Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury (collectively, the Departments) issued the Transparency in Coverage final rule (the Rule), along with a fact sheet, setting forth requirements for group health plans and health insurance issuers to disclose cost-sharing information upon request to participants, as well as additional pricing information to the general public.

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New H-1B Rules Struck Down

by Paul Hughes | Dec 7, 2020 | Employment, Labor

On December 1, Judge Jeffrey White of the US District Court for the Northern District of California invalidated two new regulations that raised prevailing wages and eligibility criteria for foreign workers to receive H-1B visas.

“This decision ensures the continued viability of the H-1B program, which supplies work authorization to more than 580,000 individuals in the United States,” Paul Hughes, partner at McDermott Will & Emery, said in a recent article by the Society of Human Resource Management.

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4 Tips to Help Benefits Plans Achieve Mental Health Parity

by McDermott Will & Emery | Nov 20, 2020 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

As federal benefits regulators turn their focus toward plans’ mental health offerings and California lawmakers expand plans’ obligations in that area, now is a great time for employers to ensure their plan approaches mental health treatment the same way as traditional medical care.

In a recent article by Law360, McDermott partner Judith Wethall helps explain the importance of mental health parity in benefits plans.

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DOL Creates Path for 401(k) Plans to Offer Private Equity Investment Options

by Todd Solomon and Brian Tiemann | Oct 29, 2020 | Employee Benefits, Fiduciary and Investment Issues

In June, the US Department of Labor issued an information letter indicating that it will allow defined contribution retirement plans (such as 401(k) plans) to indirectly invest in private equity funds. While information letters are not binding, this new guidance creates a significant opportunity for plan sponsors to consider investment options that include private equity funds. However, it will be important for both plan sponsors and funds to carefully evaluate potential investments for compliance with fiduciary requirements.

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DOL Proposed Regulations on Proxy Voting

by Todd Solomon and Brian Tiemann | Oct 27, 2020 | Employee Benefits, Fiduciary and Investment Issues

The Department of Labor (DOL) issued a proposed rule with 30-day comment period to address the application of fiduciaries’ duties with respect to proxy voting and exercises of other shareholder rights. The proposal requires fiduciaries to vote any proxy where the matter being voted upon would have an economic impact on the plan and prohibits fiduciaries from voting any proxy that does not have an economic impact on the plan. In our recent webinar, we reviewed the proposal and explained what the changes mean for plan sponsors.

View the slide deck here.

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