Construction company and directors convicted for deduction and non-remittance of employee pension contributions to the Construction Workers Pension Scheme

Wednesday 18 January 2012: Yesterday, Tuesday 17 January 2012, in Thurles District Court, Judge Lucey convicted and imposed conditional fines totalling €2,000 on EJF Plant Hire Limited Ltd., a limited liability company with a registered address at Parkeen, Graigue, Thurles, Co. Tipperary for failing to remit employee pension contributions to the trustee of the Construction Workers Pension Scheme (CWPS) within the statutory time limit, and for failing to comply with a statutory request made by The Pensions Board.  

Eamon Flanagan, a director of the company, was also convicted and conditionally fined €2,500 for similar offences to those committed by the company. Lucy Flanagan, also a director of the company, was also convicted and fined conditionally €500 for failure to comply with a statutory request made by The Pensions Board.  These fines were conditional on the basis that an amount of €3,735.62 is paid to the pension scheme by 17 July 2012. If this amount is not paid by that date, these matters will be remitted back to the Court to consider further sentencing options.

EJF Plant Hire Ltd. had deducted pension contributions from the wages and salaries of its employees in the months of December 2007, December 2008, December 2009, January 2010, May 2010 and June 2010 for remittance to the trustee of CWPS but had failed to remit the contributions to the trustee within the statutory time frame. These offences were committed with the consent, connivance or were attributable to the neglect on the part of Eamon Flanagan, a director of the company.

Commenting on the conviction in this case, the Chief Executive of The Pensions Board, Mr. Brendan Kennedy, said, “This conviction should act as a warning to all employers and company directors that The Pensions Board treats the failure of the employer to remit pension contributions to the trustees of the pension scheme as a very serious offence. We advise any employer with outstanding pension contributions to immediately contact the pension scheme to regularise their position.”

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For further information, contact:

David Malone
Head of Information
The Pensions Board
Tel (01) 6131900

Note to Editors

The Pensions Board

The Pensions Board is the statutory body established by The Pensions Act 1990 to regulate occupational pension schemes, trust based RACs and Personal Retirement Savings Accounts (PRSAs) and to advise the Minister for Social Protection on overall pension policy development. See www.pensionsboard.ie

Under the Act, the Board has power to investigate the state and conduct of Irish pension schemes, and to ensure that trustees, employers, pension administrators and their advisers comply with the obligations they owe to current and former employees in relation to their pension contributions and benefits.

The Board’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 and or sue any person that contravenes the provisions of the Act.

The Construction Workers Pension Scheme (“CWPS”)

CWPS is an occupational pension scheme approved by the Revenue Commissioners and registered with The Pensions Board.  It was established pursuant to a Registered Employment Agreement (“REA”) on Construction Industry Pensions, Assurance and Sick Pay, which is registered by the Labour Court and was concluded between employers and employee organisations operating in the construction industry.

Under the REA, all employers operating in the construction industry are required to become a party to an approved contributory pension scheme to provide pension and death-in-service benefits to employees. These obligations are discharged by deducting pension contributions from their employees and remitting them to CWPS or another appropriate scheme.