EARNINGS PER SHARE (Details) (USD $) Share data in Millions, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2012	Apr. 02, 2011
Numerator:
Net income attributable to Franklin Electric Co., Inc.	$ 23,046,000	$ 10,679,000
Less: Undistributed earnings allocated to redeemable non-controlling interest	0	99,000
Net Income attributable to Franklin Electric Co., Inc. Excluding Undistributed Earnings	$ 23,000,000	$ 10,600,000
Basic
Weighted average common shares (in shares)	23.4	23.2
Effect of dilutive securities:
Employee and director incentive stock options and awards (in shares)	0.5	0.5
Adjusted weighted average common shares (in shares)	23.9	23.7
Basic earnings per share (in dollars per share)	$ 0.99	$ 0.46
Diluted earnings per share (in dollars per share)	$ 0.96	$ 0.45
Stock Options [Member]
Effect of dilutive securities:
Anti-dilutive stock options (in shares)	0	0.2
Anti-dilutive stock options price range – low (in dollars per share)	$ 43.43	$ 43.43
Anti-dilutive stock options price range – high (in dollars per share)	$ 43.43	$ 48.87