Five former Dell Technologies employees have filed a lawsuit accusing the company of mismanaging its 401(k) retirement plan, allegedly costing workers more than $318 million. The proposed class-action suit was filed on January 28 in a federal court in Austin, Texas, and seeks to recover losses on behalf of all plan participants.
The plaintiffs—Allison Lowl, Eric Rodgers, Michael Schwartz, and John Vedamanikam—claim Dell violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) by retaining underperforming investment options for years despite the availability of better-performing alternatives. According to the complaint, Dell’s proprietary investment products, including the Dell Pre-Mixed Portfolio Target Date Series and Dell Core funds, consistently lagged behind comparable market funds.
A central allegation in the case is self-dealing. The lawsuit contends that Dell designed the funds, selected their managers, controlled asset allocation, and collected fees from these decisions, creating conflicts of interest that breach federal retirement regulations.
Dell’s 401(k) plan is substantial, covering roughly 63,000 employees and holding about $14.6 billion in assets as of 2024. The complaint alleges that nearly one-third of those assets were invested in the underperforming funds.
Dell declined to comment, citing ongoing litigation. Beyond financial recovery, the plaintiffs are seeking the return of fees earned through the alleged self-dealing and reforms to the plan’s governance and investment practices.
