What is ERISA? The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) is the federal law that sets minimum standards and protections for qualified employment plans such as pension plans or health benefit plans. Section 1140 of ERISA prohibits any person from interfering with an employee’s rights under the act. Specifically it states:
It shall be unlawful for any person to discharge, fine, suspend, expel, discipline, or discriminate against a participant or beneficiary for exercising any right to which he is entitled under the provisions of an employee benefit plan . . . or for the purpose of interfering with the attainment of any right to which such participant may become entitled under the plan . . . . It shall be unlawful for any person to discharge, fine, suspend, expel, or discriminate against any person because he has given information or has testified or is about to testify in any inquiry or proceeding relating to this chapter . . . .
While this does not guarantee an employee their job until they are fully vested in their employer’s benefit plan, section 1140 does prevent employers from taking any action for the purpose of preventing an employee from obtaining benefits. This means that an employer cannot do anything to an employee that is intended to purposefully prevent that employee from obtaining benefits that they would have otherwise been entitled to. For instance, an employer cannot fire an employee a week before they become fully vested in a plan in order to prevent that employee from fully vesting. Section 1140 also applies to health benefit plans and would make it illegal for an employer to fire an employee who recently became ill for the purpose of reducing possible increases in that employee’s healthcare costs. If you think your employer has or is attempting to interfere with your entitlement to benefits under a qualified plan the attorneys at Lebau & Neuworth may be able to help. We are experienced in dealing with these types of claims. Not so long ago, Lebau & Neuworth attorneys represented a long- term employee who was terminated one day before his 20th employment anniversary, which would have increased his pension benefit, by more than $150,000. This case was successfully resolved. Know your ERISA rights, and contact us if you have any questions. Thank you.
