Investing August 30, 2006

July Fund Assets Tick Upward

August 30, 2006 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The combined assets of the nation's mutual funds edged up by $40.3 billion, or 0.4%, to $9.377 trillion in July, according to the Investment Company Institute's (ICI) latest data.
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class=”normal-1″> According to an ICI news release , long-term funds – stock, bond, and hybrid funds – had a net inflow of $3.7 billion in July after a $9.45 billion June outflow.

class=”normal-1″> Stock funds enjoyed a $585 million inflow in July, compared with an outflow of $8.6 billion in June. Among stock offerings, world equity funds saw an inflow of $4.84 billion for the month, much greater than the $818 million June influx. Funds that invest primarily in the US had an outflow of $4.26 billion in July after reporting an outflow of $9.42 billion in June.

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class=”normal-1″> Hybrid funds posted an $87 million outflow in July, compared with a June outflow of $489 million, ICI said.

class=”normal-1″> Moving on to bond funds, ICI data shows an inflow of $3.2 billion in July, compared to an outflow of $362 million in June. Taxable bond funds had an inflow of $2.86 billion for the month versus an outflow of $645 million in June.

class=”normal-1″> Money market funds had an inflow of $26.84 billion in July, compared with an inflow of $19.79 billion in June.

 

 

Compliance August 29, 2006

Pregnant Trucker Loses Discrimination Suit Battle

August 29, 2006 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A woman who claims she was illegally fired as a driver for a Tennessee trucking firm after she became pregnant has lost her second legal battle.
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The 6 th US Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with US District Judge Bernice Donald of the US District Court for the Western District of Tennessee that plaintiff Amanda Reeves had not shown that Swift Transportation intended to discriminate against her because of her pregnancy.

Reeves could not produce evidence that Swift or any of its employees made disparaging comments or wanted her off the job because she was pregnant, the appellate panel said.

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The company’s policy mandated that i ts light duty positions were reserved for workers injured on the job. The court noted that a man recovering from surgery necessitated by anything other than an on-the-job injury would not have been eligible for light duty either. The appellate panel therefore reasoned Swift’s policy for light duty assignments was neutral and Reeves was actually seeking preferential, rather than equal, treatment.

According to court background, Reeves was able to lift up to 200 pounds that might need to be offloaded from a truck when she was hired in August 2002. In November, she learned she was pregnant. At that time her family doctor and her obstetrician requested from Swift that she not lift anything heavier than 20 pounds.

Reeves requested a light duty assignment and was told nothing was available for her. She was later fired.

The case is Reeves v. Swift Transportation Co.,   U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, No. 05-5271 (5/16/06). The ruling is here .

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