Retirement plans (Pension Plans, Defined Benefit [Member])

6 Months Ended

Jun. 24, 2012

Pension Plans, Defined Benefit [Member]

Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]

Retirement plans

NOTE 6 – Retirement plans

The Company and its subsidiaries have various retirement plans, including plans established under collective bargaining agreements. The Gannett Retirement Plan is the Company’s principal retirement plan. The Company’s retirement plan costs, which include costs for qualified and nonqualified plans, are presented in the following table:

(in thousands of dollars)
	Thirteen Weeks Ended						Twenty-six Weeks Ended
	Jun. 24, 2012			Jun. 26, 2011			Jun. 24, 2012			Jun. 26, 2011
Service cost-benefits earned during the period	$	1,747		$	1,841		$	3,779		$	3,946
Interest cost on benefit obligation		38,077			41,635			77,731			84,507
Expected return on plan assets		(47,145	)		(51,424	)		(94,794	)		(104,523	)
Amortization of prior service cost		1,917			1,859			3,845			3,734
Amortization of actuarial loss		12,919			9,508			26,424			18,789
Expense for Company-sponsored retirement plans		7,515			3,419			16,985			6,453
Settlement charges		5,423			—			5,423			—
Total retirement plan cost	$	12,938		$	3,419		$	22,408		$	6,453

For the twenty-six weeks ended June 24, 2012, the Company made contributions to the Gannett Retirement Plan (GRP) totaling $76 million. The Company contributed an additional $18 million to the GRP early in the third quarter of 2012. The President signed into law the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act or MAP–21 (H.R.4348) in July 2012. The bill includes, among other things, funding stabilization provisions that would affect required contributions for 2012 and 2013. Detailed guidance necessary to determine the precise impact of this legislation has not been issued. However, the Company expects no additional contributions to the GRP will be required for the remainder of 2012 based on the new legislation and a lower contribution level for 2013.

During the second quarter of 2012, the Company recorded settlement charges totaling $5.4 million as a result of the costs of settlements exceeding the sum of service and interest costs for one of the Company’s retirement plans.