Products November 7, 2011

Smart401k Introduces À La Carte Service Options

November 7, 2011 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Smart401k is offering a new, flexible service delivery model for plan sponsors and plan-level advisers.
 

Reported by

Smart401k developed the model in anticipation of the Department of Labor’s release of the final definition of fiduciary.

The à la carte service model focuses on the need to provide menu options in an environment subject to fee and expense scrutiny.

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 “Plan sponsors and plan-level advisers want choice and the ability to customize their plan’s options. This customization allows each group to meet the needs of their participant base, while keeping costs under control,” said Scott Swezy, Smart401k vice president of strategy and distribution.

Benefits November 7, 2011

Sears to Pay $100K in Discrimination and Retaliation Suit

November 7, 2011 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – Sears, Roebuck & Co. will pay $100,000 to settle a race, sex, and age discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). 
 
Reported by

The EEOC had charged that Sears subjected an African-American female employee over the age of 40 to race, age, and sex discrimination, as well as retaliation for complaining about it.

In the lawsuit filed in September 2010, the EEOC charged that Mary Johnson, who had worked in loss prevention at several Sears stores in the Oklahoma City area from 1982 until her termination in March 2010, was passed over for promotion to supervisor several times beginning in 2007 in favor of younger, less experienced, white males.

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According to the EEOC, Sears retaliated against Johnson for her original discrimination charge in September 2007 by subjecting her to worsening conditions at work. Sears last passed over Johnson for a promotion in 2010, just prior to terminating her employment in March 2010 for complaining about its practices and participating in the EEOC’s investigative process. Sears denies it discriminated against Johnson.

The EEOC filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

In addition to the $100,000 payment, Sears agreed to take specified actions designed to prevent future discrimination, including the posting of anti-discrimination notices to employees, dissemination of its anti-discrimination policy, and providing anti-discrimination training to employees. The settlement terms are set forth in a consent decree filed with the court.

The case is EEOC v. Sears Roebuck & Company, No. 5:10-cv-01068-R)

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