DOL Sues Wisconsin-based Contractor; Alleges Failure to Remit PW Contributions

The U.S. Department of Labor recently announced that it has sued B & K Builders Inc. of Marshfield and its co-owners, Robert Aschenbrenner and Kenneth Staab, to restore $17,835.41 plus interest to the company’s 401(k) profit-sharing plan. Additionally, the suit seeks restitution of $97,307.79 from B & K Builders Inc. and Staab as fiduciaries to the B&K Builders Inc. Prevailing Wage Plan.

The case is the result of an investigation by the department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration into alleged violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

The lawsuit alleges that the company, Aschenbrenner and Staab failed to forward $17,835.41 in employee contributions to the company’s 401(k) plan from Sept. 23, 2006, to May 15, 2008.  They also failed to timely remit employee contributions to the plan from June 30, 2005, to Aug. 24, 2006.  The plan had 52 active participants and $222,633 in assets as of March 31, 2009, the latest information available.

The suit also alleges that B & K Builders Inc. agreed to utilize a portion of the money received under state and federal contracts to pay employer contributions to the Prevailing Wage Plan. The Prevailing Wage Plan mandates that B & K Builders Inc. pay required prevailing wage contributions to the Prevailing Wage Plan.  Staab and B & K Builders Inc., as fiduciaries, failed to remit $97,307.79 in employer contributions for the period of June 2007 through June 2009 to the Prevailing Wage Plan.

The suit seeks a court order to restore money owed to both plans; correct transactions prohibited by law; remove B & K Builders, Aschenbrenner and Staab from serving as fiduciaries to the plans; and permanently bar them from serving as fiduciaries to any ERISA-covered plan in the future.  It also asks the court to appoint an independent fiduciary to administer the plans.

You can read the DOL’s News Release here.