• What is the 401(k) Express E-Mail?
Slavic Online is offering a free service to send your 401(k) balance to you by e-mail once per week. We also provide links to online information about your 401(k) plan to help you better manage your investments. To subscribe click here.

• How do I access my 401(k) account information?
In order to view your balance, go to our home page and click on “Manage Your Account.” Enter your Social Security Number (SSN) (without hyphens) and your Personal Identification Number (PIN). The default PIN Number is the last four digits of your SSN. You may change your User ID and PIN once you have already logged into your account.

• What do I do if I forgot my PIN, my PIN is locked in a security log, or my SSN/PIN is the wrong combination?
You have two options:

• Go to the “Manage Your Account” section of our site and fill out the form under ”Forgot your PIN?”
• Send us a fax with a note explaining you need your PIN Reset. Include your full name, SSN, date of birth, phone number and signature.
Both of these options will reset your PIN to your default PIN. There is usually a 24 hour period, except for weekends, before this process is completed.

• What is the difference between a password and a PIN?
Your password is used for the enrollment or change forms which are located here. Your PIN is used to view your 401(k) account balance which is located here.

• How do I know my account information is secure?
The account information and transaction area uses Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption to ensure that your account information is not accessible to others. You are also required to enter a personal identification number (PIN) to access your specific account information. Upon accessing your account, you should change your PIN to something different. This PIN should be kept confidential.

• I received my statement and the amount of contributions does not match the amount deducted on my pay stub - why?
Your payroll service by law has until the 15th business day of the month following the month in which the deferral was deducted to transmit it to your 401(k) plan. Therefore, there is always a lag between the time it is deducted and when it appears on your cash basis statement. Your payroll service may transmit your money more frequently than monthly if administratively possible. However, the compilation of the data file that must accompany the money is complex and includes required data to make the contribution. The file usually includes thousands of employees, meaning the processing time is lengthy and the reason your deferral can’t be transmitted any faster. Once the funds and the data file are received, it takes Slavic 2 to 4 days to process the information and send the trade to the fund companies. The fund companies have, by law, three days to settle the trade, after which, you will see your contribution on your statement via the Web or voice response system.

• Why do we have two plans?
Your PEO may have an old frozen, single employer plan that is not compatible with the new multiple employer plan. Because they are different types of plans, the regulations prevent them from being merged and the assets must remain separate. If you have a balance in both plans, you will receive two statements in separate mailings.

• Where is the money held if there is a 4 to 6 week delay in investing it?
As explained in question one, the compilation of the required data accompanying the contribution is a lengthy and complex systems process. Until this is accomplished, your money remains at the PEO. It cannot be invested until an electronic data file can be compiled. When the file is ready, the money is sent to a trust account while Slavic does the accounting, plan testing, and the trade. This usually takes 3 days. During this period, interest does not accrue to you because trust accounts, by law, do not pay interest, nor does Slavic earn any interest on your money. Your 401(k) plan has daily valuations and segregated accounts requiring advanced systems to provide you this information. Your deferral is tested before it goes to the fund companies to insure that eligibility is met, vesting is computed, and that you haven’t exceeded certain deferral limits. This process takes 2 to 4 days and requires all of your payroll information for every contribution in order to operate your plan compliantly. If the PEO could increase the frequency of transmissions, the cost of the plan would go up because more processing would occur. For this reason, your deferrals are being invested cost effectively and as fast as administratively feasible.

• Can I transfer my 401(k) balance in the frozen plan into an IRA if I’m fully vested?
You cannot take a distribution or roll to an IRA while you are still employed under IRS regulations.

• Why can’t I take my money out of the plan if I am no longer participating?
IRS regulations prevent taking a distribution if you are still employed at the PEO or the work-site employer. Once you terminate employment, you may withdraw your vested balance.

• When I exchange funds in my account, it does not show up immediately on the website - why?
If your plan only allows quarterly changes, your request won’t be processed until the 10th business day of the month following the end of the quarter. Your 401k plan is not designed for day trading. Most financial experts recommend that participants asset allocate and trade infrequently and not try and time the market. To make exchanges faster would drive up the cost of the plan and encourage rapid trading and that is not an advantage to the majority of participants.