Benefits — Missouri

Employee Retirement Income Security Act

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) is a federal law that sets standards for the establishment and operation of employee benefit plans that are voluntarily established by employers in the private sector. The goal of ERISA is protection of the interests of plan participants and their beneficiaries. Employers should have a basic understanding of ERISA because this federal law is the primary source for regulation of retirement and welfare programs for employees and imposes personal liability on plan fiduciaries.

ERISA regulates employer plans that fall into either of the two following categories:

• employee welfare benefit plans
• employee pension benefit plans.

These categories will be more fully explained below. At the outset, it should be noted that ERISA categorically excludes the following types of benefit plans:

• governmental plans
• church plans
• plans that are maintained solely to comply with workers' compensation, unemployment compensation or disability insurance laws
• plans maintained outside of the United States largely for the benefit of non-resident aliens
• unfunded excess benefit plans, which are plans that offer benefits in excess of contribution...
  
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