Employers who like the idea of outsourcing as much labor and responsibility as possible, as cost-efficiently as possible, should consider a Multiple Employer Plan ("MEP.")  Employers with unusual or highly customized plan provisions or who prefer to make all fiduciary and investment decisions- and don't mind the responsibility and labor this entails- are not candidates for a MEP.

Yes, your joinder agreement gives you a broad range of choices for the plan provisions that apply to your organization and its employees. You choose how much to contribute, when, and to whom based on the plan provisions you elect.

Yes, you choose the eligibility and entry provisions based on a wide range of choices available under a MEP.

You control a wide range of plan provisions that is intended to accommodate the wishes of most employers, but a key advantage of a MEP is efficiency: consequently, highly unusual or custom provisions might not be available in the joinder agreement.

In a MEP, all of the principal fiduciary roles are outsourced, as compared to a typical single employer plan in which the employer and its executives are the fiduciaries.

Yes. Every Adopting Employer ("AE") makes a decision to join the program, and this is a fiduciary decision. Also each AE remains responsible for making timely contributions, providing accurate data, and for internal processing responsibilities such as payroll. However, being a fiduciary for one purpose does not make you a fiduciary for all purposes—you are only responsible for the handful of responsibilities you retain. All other fiduciary duties are outsourced to the plan’s professional fiduciaries as outlined in the trust and service agreements. And as Department of Labor regulations and ERISA itself make clear, an employer "…shall not be liable for acts or omissions…" of the professional fiduciaries. So while you are still a fiduciary as an AE of the Plan, the scope of your fiduciary duty is very limited.

Joining a MEP reduces but does not eliminate an AEs workload. AEs must still handle payroll, provide accurate data, notify plan fiduciaries of employee changes, and make timely contributions. Nevertheless, because all of the principal fiduciary roles—Named Fiduciary, Trustee, Administrator, and Investment Manager—have been delegated to professionals, all of the functions and responsibilities associated with those roles are outsourced, subject to any exceptions listed in the trust and service agreements.

A conscientious retirement plan sponsor spends time in a variety of meetings; reads and approves a large number of documents; signs off on participant requests such as loans, distributions, hardship distributions, and qualified domestic relations orders (QDROs); approves and enforces an investment policy through regular due diligence; oversees the audit and auditor; approves the Form 5500; studies a wide variety of disclosures; conducts periodic reviews of service providers, and much more. These functions take time, and the people responsible are often an organization’s most senior and high-paid owners and executives. For all of the functions listed above and more, the time required is reduced or eliminated when an employer participates in a MEP.

Yes. You simply complete the necessary paperwork and go through a transition process. In most cases, a processing charge will apply as described in the fee schedule. The assets attributable to your employees are then spun out into a successor plan of your choosing.

Every adopting employer has the right to provide a nominee for the Board whenever a Directorship is open. Board members generally serve terms of two to four years.

Service with all adopting employers is counted for participation, vesting and benefit accruals.

If you have 100 or more eligible participants (the definition of a "large plan filer"), you need an audit. If you filed as a small plan filer last year you qualify for a transitional rule whereby you can continue to avoid an audit if you have fewer than 120 eligible participants.

Yes, in most instances because the Plan Administrator has negotiated a substantial discount. If you need an audit, the cost is likely to be less than what you would pay if you had to negotiate pricing by yourself. Nevertheless, you retain the option of handling the audit yourself. Refer to the fee schedule for pricing.

The Plan Administrator can take care of the bond and the cost will be included in your pricing. Tell your insurance agent you do not need this coverage; ERISA bonds are not expensive but there is no need to pay for coverage you do not need.