Feds Crack Down on 401(k) Fraud

BOSTON (TheStreet) -- The U.S. Labor Department is redoubling efforts to crack down on employers who bilk retirement and health plan participants out of their contributions.

In a growing number of cases, workers have had contributions to their pension or health plans withheld from paychecks but not deposited to the plans by employers. Instead, the employers keep the contributions and use them for their own purposes.

The new Contributory Plans Criminal Project, announced this week, is the agency's first criminal national enforcement project targeting people who commit fraud and abuse against participants and beneficiaries of contributory employee benefit plans.

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