Does an employer have to offer a retirement program?
• A: Not usually. But retirement programs, including pension plans, are established by companies as one of the incentives to work for them, and to help employees with retirement needs. If a retirement program is offered, it will usually be a “qualified” plan with favorable tax benefits for the employer. In these cases, the employer must follow rules set out in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). ERISA covers the information that must be included in the plan, how the plan will be administered, penalties for failure to follow the act and other certain minimum standards.
