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Employee Benefit Plans
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2014
Compensation and Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]  
Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits Disclosure [Text Block]

12. Employee Benefit Plans

The Company has a profit sharing and thrift employee benefit plan in effect for all eligible employees. Company contributions under this defined contribution plan are based upon a percentage of income with limitations as defined by the plan. Contributions for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012 amounted to $6.9 million, $4.9 million, and $5.9 million, respectively. The Company also has an employee benefit plan in effect for certain non-union hourly employees. Company contributions under this defined contribution plan are based upon a percentage of income with limitations as defined by the plan. Contributions for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012 amounted to $0.6 million, $0.6 million and $0.6 million, respectively.
The Company contributes to a number of multiemployer defined benefit pension plans under the terms of collective-bargaining agreements that cover its union-represented employees. A defined benefit pension plan promises an employee a specified monthly benefit on retirement that is predetermined by a formula based on the employee’s earnings history, tenure of service, age or other data, rather than depending on investment returns. The Company’s employees that are covered under the multiemployer defined benefit plans are represented by over 100 local unions. The related collective bargaining agreements between those organizations and the Company expire at different times between 2015 and 2017.
The risks of participating in these multiemployer defined benefit plans are different from single-employer plans in the following aspects:
1)
Assets contributed to the multiemployer plan by one employer may be used to provide benefits to employees of other participating employers.
2)
If a participating employer stops contributing to a plan, the unfunded obligations of the plan may be borne by the remaining participating employers.
3)
If the Company chooses to stop participating in a multiemployer plan, it may be required to pay the plan an amount based on the underfunded status of the plan, referred to as a withdrawal liability.
The Company has no plans to withdraw from any multiemployer defined benefit plans in which it currently participates. The plans do not maintain information on the net assets and actuarial present value of the plans’ unfunded vested benefits allocable to the Company, and the amounts, if any, for which the Company may be contingently liable. While these amounts could be material they are not ascertainable at this time. The Company’s participation in significant multiemployer defined benefit plans for the annual periods ended December 31, 2012 through December 31, 2014 is outlined in the table below. The “EIN/Pension Plan Number” column provides the Employee Identification Number (EIN) and the three-digit plan number, if applicable. The most recent Pension Protection Act (PPA) zone status available in 2012 and 2011 is for the plan’s year-end indicated in the table. The zone status is based on information that the Company received from the plan. Among other factors, plans in the red zone are generally less than 65 percent funded, plans in the yellow zone are less than 80 percent funded, and plans in the green zone are at least 80 percent funded. The “Funding Plan” column indicates plans for which a financial improvement plan or a rehabilitation plan is either pending or has been implemented.
Listed in the table below are the significant multiemployer defined contribution plans to which the Company contributes. Defined contribution plans are retirement plans to which the Company contributes a fixed amount each pay period as long as the Company has employees covered under the plan. Future benefits to the employee from defined contribution plans are not guaranteed and fluctuate on the basis of investment earnings, and therefore the Company is not obligated to make payments other than current contributions for employees currently employed.
 
 
EIN/Pension Plan Number
Pension Protection Act Zone Status
Contributions to Plan
(in thousands)
Funding Plan
Min Future Contrib
Pension Fund
Status
Plan Year End
Status
Plan Year End
2014
2013
2012
Defined Benefit Plans:
National Electrical Benefit Fund
53-0181657 001
Green
12/31/2013
Green
12/31/2012
$
6,330
$
6,048
$
5,731
No
3% of
wages
Eighth District Electrical Pension Fund
84-6100393 001
Green
3/31/2014
Green
3/31/2013
5,197
5,672
3,733
No
$
1.71/hr
IBEW Local 1249 Pension Plan
15-6035161 001
Yellow
12/31/2013
Yellow
12/31/2012
2,103
3,147
3,679
Yes
$
9.60/hr
Defined Contribution Plans:
National Electrical Annuity Plan
52-6132372 001
n/a
n/a
20,694
21,002
17,081
n/a
n/a
Eighth District Electrical Pension Fund Annuity Plan
84-6100393 002
n/a
n/a
3,553
2,427
2,560
n/a
n/a
All other plans:
6,947
5,591
6,979
Total Contributions:
$
44,824
$
43,887
$
39,763
The data presented in the table above represents data available to us for the two most recent plan years. The changes in contributions between periods to the multiemployer plans were primarily due to the increase/decrease in the number of Company employees covered by the plans and the number of hours that those employees worked, which was caused by the increase/decrease in our business activity.
One of the company’s subsidiaries was listed in the Eighth District Electrical Pension Fund’s Form 5500 as providing more than 5 percent of the total contributions to that plan for the plan years ending March 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012. Another of the company’s subsidiaries was listed in the IBEW Local 1249 Pension Plan’s Form 5500 as providing more than 5 percent of the total contributions to that plan for the plan years ending December 31, 2013 and 2012.