The U.S. Department of Labor will hold a free workshop to help employers and health and pension plan administrators better comply with the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the federal law that governs private employer pension and health benefit plans for employees. The workshop will be held April 19 at the Embassy Suites Hotel, located one mile from the Irvine-Orange County Airport. The Embassy Suites Hotel is located at 2120 Main St., Irvine, California.

The half-day workshop, sponsored by the Labor Department's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) will offer comprehensive information and one-on-one help about the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP). The program is designed to encourage plan administrators to comply with federal law that covers privately sponsored pension and health plans, such as 401(k) plans.

The VFCP provides plan fiduciaries with an opportunity to identify and self-correct certain types of violations covered by the program. Participants must fully correct the violations, calculate any losses and restore those losses with interest or profits, and distribute any supplemental benefits owed to eligible participants and beneficiaries. The program also offers relief from Labor Department penalties and Internal Revenue Service excise taxes that might otherwise be imposed.

The Embassy Suites Hotel is located at 2120 Main St., Irvine, California. The workshop will begin at 8:30 a.m. with a brief overview of the program. EBSA staff will be on hand until 1:00 p.m. to answer questions and provide one-on-one program assistance. The workshop is open to employers, accountants, plan fiduciaries, third party administrators, attorneys, and anyone with concerns about their responsibilities administering pension plans.

To RSVP for the workshop please email [email protected] or contact Dan Doherty at (626) 229-1007.

For more information on the VFCP and the workshop, please contact EBSA's Los Angeles regional office at (626) 229-1000 or send an e-mail to [email protected].