Amendment to Employee Retirement Benefits Security Act

By Weon Jung Kim, Hyun Jae Park

An amendment to the Employee Retirement Benefits Security Act (the "Act") was promulgated on July 25, 2011 and is scheduled to take effect on July 26, 2012. The following is a brief summary of the key provisions of the amendment.

• Retirement Pension System: Pursuant to Article 5 of the Employee Retirement Benefits Security Act, as amended, companies that are newly established after the amendment becomes effective must set up a retirement pension system within one year from its establishment date. During the implementation of the retirement pension system, companies are required to seek input from, and coordinate with, the employees' representative(s). Companies that are newly formed by way of a merger or spin off are exempted from this requirement.