Employee Benefit Plans

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Compensation And Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]

Employee Benefit Plans

Note 7    Employee Benefit Plans

The Company maintains supplemental non-qualified plans for certain officers and other key employees. The expense for these plans was not material for 2021, 2020 or 2019.  The discount rate used to measure the net periodic pension cost was 2.08% for 2021, 2.87% for 2020 and 2.86% for 2019.  The amount accrued was $0.6 million and $0.4 million as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.  

The Company also maintains an Employee Savings and Stock Ownership Plan (“ESSOP”) for the majority of the U.S. employees.  The ESSOP includes a voluntary 401(k) savings plan that allows certain employees to defer up to 50% of their income on a pretax basis subject to limits on maximum amounts.  The Company matches 25% of each employee’s contribution, with the match percentage applying to a maximum of 7% of each employee's salary.  Compensation expense was $0.9 million in 2021 compared to $0.5 million in 2020 and $0.6 million in 2019.

The Company also contributes to a defined contribution feature within the ESSOP plan. Contributions are discretionary and are calculated as a percentage of eligible wages of the employee.  Compensation expense under the defined contribution feature was $3.1 million in 2021, $2.0 million in 2020 and $3.1 million in 2019.

Other Postretirement Benefits

The Company also has a postretirement healthcare benefit plan that provides medical benefits for certain U.S. retirees and eligible dependents hired prior to November 1, 2004.  Employees are eligible to receive postretirement healthcare benefits upon meeting certain age and service requirements.  No employees hired after October 31, 2004 are eligible to receive these benefits.  This plan requires employee contributions to offset benefit costs.      

The following table sets forth the components of net periodic postretirement benefit cost for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019:

	2021		2020			2019
	(In thousands)
Service cost, benefits attributed for service of active    employees for the period	$	104	$	103		$	103
Interest cost on the accumulated postretirement benefit obligation		99		154			210
Amortization of actuarial gain		—		(22	)		(117	)
Net periodic postretirement benefit cost	$	203	$	235		$	196

The discount rate used to measure the net periodic postretirement benefit cost was 2.45% for 2021, 3.19% for 2020 and 4.33% for 2019.  It is the Company's policy to fund healthcare benefits on a cash basis.  Because the plan is unfunded, there are no plan assets.  The following table provides a reconciliation of the projected benefit obligation at the Company's December 31 measurement date:

	2021			2020
	(In thousands)
Benefit obligation at beginning of year	$	6,145		$	6,075
Service cost		104			103
Interest cost		99			154
Actuarial (gain) loss		(504	)		202
Plan participants' contributions		603			474
Benefits paid		(903	)		(863	)
Benefit obligation, end of year	$	5,544		$	6,145

The amounts recognized in the Consolidated Balance Sheets at December 31 are:

	2021		2020
	(In thousands)
Accrued compensation and employee benefits	$	331	$	356
Accrued non-pension postretirement benefits		5,213		5,789
Amounts recognized at December 31	$	5,544	$	6,145

The discount rate used to measure the accumulated postretirement benefit obligation was 2.82% for 2021 and 2.45% for 2020.  The Company's discount rate assumptions for its postretirement benefit plan are based on the average yield of a

hypothetical high quality bond portfolio with maturities that approximately match the estimated cash flow needs of the plan.  Because the plan requires the Company to establish fixed Company contribution amounts for retiree healthcare benefits, future healthcare cost trends do not generally impact the Company's accruals or provisions.

Estimated future benefit payments of postretirement benefits, assuming increased cost sharing, expected to be paid in each of the next five years beginning with 2022 are $0.4 million through 2026, with an aggregate of $1.9 million for the five years thereafter.  These amounts can vary significantly from year to year because the cost sharing estimates can vary from actual expenses as the Company is self-insured.

Amounts included in accumulated other comprehensive income, net of tax, at December 31, 2021 that have not yet been recognized in net periodic benefit cost are as follows:

	Pension plans		Other postretirement benefits
	(In thousands)
Net actuarial loss (gain)	$	110	$	(504	)

Amounts included in accumulated other comprehensive income, net of tax, at December 31, 2021 expected to be recognized in net periodic benefit cost during the fiscal year ending December 31, 2022 are not expected to be material.