1. Employee vs. Employer Contributions
The Aromatique, Inc.. 401(k) and Profit Sharing Plan may include both employee salary deferrals and employer matching or profit-sharing contributions. Typically, QDROs divide the total balance accrued during the marriage. But special care must be taken to differentiate which contributions were made and when.
For example:
- Employee deferrals are always 100% vested and included in division.
- Employer contributions may be subject to a vesting schedule (usually based on years of service).
If some employer contributions are unvested at the time of divorce, those may not be payable to the alternate payee. The QDRO should be clear about how to handle this.

