Current law provides employers with the flexibility to give their workers investment advice without incurring a legal liability, Leslie Kramerich, acting assistant Labor secretary, told members of the American Society of Pension Actuaries in Los Angeles.
"We understand that some employers may be reluctant to provide advice out of concern that such activities give rise to fiduciary liability, she said to the society Friday. But investment advisers that provide the advice, not employers, are legally responsible for the advice, although employers are on the hook for making sure they pick the investment advisers carefully.