Retirement Is a DOL Priority: Labor Secretary

Labor Secretary Marty Walsh laid out Thursday the department’s priorities, stating: “Retirement security is a fundamental need that all working people have, and it’s part of our mission at the Department of Labor, and quite honestly, it’s been a priority.”

Speaking at the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s policy event in Washington, Walsh discussed the retirement security steps the department has taken this year, noting the American Rescue Plan “provided special assistance” to multi-employer pension plans that were at risk.

Walsh pointed to Labor’s new rules “to ensure fiduciaries can take [environmental, social and governance] factors into account when it’s appropriate. That’s going to benefit plan participants as well as we move forward.”

On cryptocurrency and cybersecurity, Walsh said Labor has issued “important reminders of how to protect your savings. So we think about the plans that are already set up in America and making sure the investments that folks are making are safe moving forward.”

And, he signaled, “there’s more to come.”

Labor warned plan fiduciaries of their liability for crypto risks in Compliance Assistance Release 2022-01, “401(k) Plan Investments in ‘Cryptocurrencies,’” issued March 10.

Walsh urged attendees to engage with Labor on cryptocurrency. “It’s important for you to have conversations with us, because as we think about regulations and policies as we move forward, we need to hear from you in this room,” Walsh said. “I hope that you feel that we listen to what you say.”

Beyond ‘Not Saving Enough’

“We define a retirement plan as an essential component of a good job, whatever that might look like,” Walsh said.

Labor, he continued, is “focused on how to make the retirement system better for those who are in it, especially in underserved communities. We’re thinking about how we can better protect and support retirement plan participants in the United States.”