RETIREMENT AND OTHER EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PROGRAMS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2018

Compensation And Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]

RETIREMENT AND OTHER EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PROGRAMS

NOTE 12 – RETIREMENT AND OTHER EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PROGRAMS

Defined Contribution Plans:

We have a 401(k) defined contribution retirement savings plan (the “Plan”) covering substantially all domestic employees. Each participant may elect to defer a portion of his or her compensation subject to certain limitations.  The Company may contribute up to 50% of compensation contributed to the Plan by each employee up to a maximum of $3,000 per annum.  During the years ended December 31, 2018, 2017, and 2016, our contributions were $10.6 million, $8.9 million, and $5.9 million, respectively.  Employees associated with the 2015 Shred-it acquisition were allowed to continue to participate in the former Shred-it 401(k) defined contribution retirement savings plan (the “Shred-it Plan”).  During the year ended December 31, 2016, we made contributions of $3.4 million to the Shred-it Plan, which was officially closed and all employees converted over to the Plan effective January 1, 2017.

The Company also has several foreign defined contribution plans, which require the Company to contribute a percentage of the participating employee’s salary according to local regulations.  During the years ended December 31, 2018, 2017, and 2016, total contributions made by the Company for these plans were approximately $3.1 million, $3.4 million, and $2.6 million, respectively.

Multiemployer Defined Benefit Pension Plans:

We participate in two trustee-managed multiemployer defined benefit pension plans (“Multiemployer Pension Plans”) for employees who are covered by collective bargaining agreements. The risks of participating in these Multiemployer Pension Plans are different from single-employer plans in that (i) assets contributed to the Multiemployer Pension Plan by one employer may be used to provide benefits to employees or former employees of other participating employers; (ii) if a participating employer stops contributing to the Multiemployer Pension Plans, the unfunded obligations of the Multiemployer Pension Plan may be required to be assumed by the remaining participating employers and (iii) if we choose to stop participating in any of our Multiemployer Pension Plans or if any event should significantly reduce or eliminate our need to participate (such as employee layoffs or closure of a location), we may be required to pay those plans a withdrawal amount based on the underfunded status of the plan.  Based upon the most recent information available, one of the plans we participate in is in “critical” status due to an accumulated funding deficiency and has adopted a rehabilitation plan to address the funding deficiency position.

The following table outlines our participation in Multiemployer Pension Plans:

			Pension Protection Act Zone Status (1), (3)			Company Contributions (4) (in millions)
	Plan Employer ID Number	Plan #	2018	2017	FIP/RP Status (2)	2018		2017		Expiration Date of Collective Bargaining Agreements
Pension Plan Private Sanitation Union, Local 813 IBT	13-1975659	1	Red/ Critical	Red/ Critical	Implemented	$	0.6	$	0.6	6/30/2019 and 3/31/2020
Nurses And Local 813 IBT Retirement Plan	13-3628926	1	Green	Green	N/A	$	-	$	-	various dates

⁽¹⁾ Zone status is defined by the Department of Labor and the Pension Protection Act of 2006 and represents the level at which the plan is funded.  Plans in the red zone are less than 65% funded, while plans in the green zone are at least 80% funded. Status is based on information received from the Multiemployer Pension Plans and is certified by the pension plans actuary.

⁽²⁾ The "FIP/RP Status" column indicates Multiemployer Pension Plans for which a Funding Improvement Plan ("FIP”) or a Rehabilitation Plan ("RP") has been implemented or is pending.  The most recent Pension Protection Act zone status available in 2018 and 2017 is for the plans’ year-end December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively.

⁽³⁾ A Multiemployer Pension Plan that has been certified as endangered, seriously endangered or critical may begin to levy a statutory surcharge on contribution rates.  Once authorized, the surcharge is at the rate of 5% for the first 12 months and 10% for any periods thereafter, until certain conditions are met.  Contributing employers, however, may eliminate the surcharge by entering into a collective bargaining agreement that meets the requirements of the applicable FIP or RP.

⁽⁴⁾ The Company was listed in the Form 5500 for the Pension Plan Private Sanitation Union Local 813 IBT as individually significant for contributing more than 5% of total contributions to such plan during the plan years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016.  At the date these financial statements were issued, Forms 5500 were not available for the Multiemployer Pension Plans for the year ended December 31, 2018.