Does anyone know what the definition of "withdrawal" is for purposes of ERISA Section 4063? Under Section 4063, a substantial employer is obligated to notify the PBGC of its withdrawal from a multiple employer plan and is required to do some other stuff too. The term "substantial employer" is pretty clearly defined, but I am having great difficulty locating the definition of "withdrawal" for purposes of Section 4063. It may be a facts and circumstances standard applied by the PBGC, but I can't even find that. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Grumpy - I moved your topic to a more appropriate board - I only hope the other dwarfs will find it. I assumed you were asking a multiemployer question, but now I'm starting to wonder if it was a PBGC notification question?

Basically whenever an employer ceases to have an obligation to contribute a withdrawal has occurred. This typically happens when they negotiate out of a multiemployer plan. But there are several other types. A mass withdrawal is when all the employers withdraw at the same time. A partial withdrawal occurs when a contributing employer has a decline in the number of base units. The amount of decline needed to trigger a partial withdrawal differs by industry. Partial tend to occur if the contributing employer closes a location or if their workloads decline.

Ultimately it is up to the plan to inform the employer that they are being assessed a withdrawal payment. There can be some facts & circumstances involved, but it’s usually fairly black and white.

Do you have a more specific question?

Hi Effen! Thanks for your response, but the situation I have does not involve a multiemployer plan--it involves a multiple employer plan (i.e., a plan co-sponsored by two or more entities which do not constitute a "controlled group"). ERISA Section 4063 does not apply to multiemployer plans. My specific question is the definition of "withdrawal" for purposes of ERISA Section 4063. Section 4063 does not define the term. The general definitions under Section 4001 don't define it and the regulations issued by the PBGC under Section 4063 don't define it. Is there a definition of "withdrawal" for purposes of ERISA Section 4063 and, if so, what is it? That's two questions (but they're related). Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! I hope there are some folks who are familiar with multiple employer plans in the multiemployer plan group.

Sorry, I moved you back. I don't work on any multiple employer plans, but I always thought the document defined those types of issues.