Secretary of the United States Department of Labor v. George D. Gilley Billy Dean Goforth Century Health Services, Inc.

Court Orders $4.2 Million Return to Employee Retirement Plan

This case involved Century Health Services, Inc. and its leaders who improperly took money from their employees' retirement plan. The company had an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) - a type of retirement benefit where workers own shares in their company. The U.S. Department of Labor sued the company and its trustees, claiming they violated their legal duty to protect the retirement funds and withdrew money that belonged to the employees.

The court ruled in favor of the Department of Labor. The judge found that Century Health Services and its trustees were responsible for breaching their duty to properly manage the employee retirement plan. The court ordered them to pay back $4,168,040 to restore the money that was improperly taken from the workers' retirement accounts.

This ruling matters because it demonstrates that employers cannot simply take money from employee retirement plans for their own purposes. When companies manage worker retirement benefits, they have a strict legal obligation to act in employees' best interests. Courts will hold employers accountable and force them to return stolen retirement funds, protecting workers' financial security in retirement.