Thursday 29 July 2021: In Waterford District Court on Monday 26 July 2021, Judge Staunton convicted Alan Kearney, director of Total Facades Limited, for failing to remit employee pension contributions to the trustee of the Construction Workers Pension Scheme (CWPS), within the statutory timeframe pursuant to section 58A(1) of the Pensions Act 1990, as amended. Mr Kearney of 39 Cedar View, Forest Road, Swords, Co. Dublin was fined €1,000.
Total Facades Limited had deducted pension contributions from the wages and salaries of its employees between April and August 2018 for remittance to the trustee of CWPS but had failed to remit the contributions within the statutory timeframe. However, a significant portion of the outstanding employee contributions due to the scheme were repaid prior to sentencing.
Commenting on the conviction in this case, the Pensions Regulator, Brendan Kennedy, said, “This conviction should act as a warning to all employers that the Pensions Authority treats the failure of the employer to remit pension contributions as a very serious offence. We advise any employer with outstanding pension contributions to immediately regularise their position".
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David Malone
Head of Operations
The Pensions Authority
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Note to Editors
The Pensions Authority
The Pensions Authority is the statutory body that supervises compliance with the requirements of the Pensions Act, 1990, as amended, by trustees of occupational pension schemes and trust RACs, PRSA providers, registered administrators and employers. The Pensions Authority also provides guidance and information to these stakeholders on their duties and responsibilities and advises the Minister for Social Protection on pension matters. See www.pensionsauthority.ie
Under the Act, the Authority has power to carry out investigations into alleged breaches of the Act and to ensure that trustees, employers, pension administrators and their advisers comply with their obligations to current and former employees in relation to their pension contributions and benefits.
The Authority’s powers allow it to conduct on-site visits without notice, seize and copy relevant documents; enter dwellings on foot of a warrant, and to prosecute any person that contravenes the provisions of the Act.
