Consolidated Statements of Operations - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Consolidated Statements of Operations [Abstract]
Net revenues	$ 2,300,488	$ 2,493,282	$ 2,370,979
Costs of products sold	1,758,268	1,881,990	1,803,719
Gross profit	542,220	611,292	567,260
Selling, general, and administrative expenses	362,226	385,696	368,542
Restructuring and severance costs	19,215	20,897	2,814
Impairment of goodwill and long-lived assets	62,980	0	0
U.S. pension settlement charges	0	15,588	0
Executive compensation charges (credit)	0	0	(1,778)
Operating Income	97,799	189,111	197,682
Other income (expense):
Interest expense	(25,685)	(24,457)	(23,130)
Other	7,976	2,489	1,853
Loss related to Tianjin explosion	(5,350)	0	0
Other income (expense), total	(23,059)	(21,968)	(21,277)
Income before taxes	74,740	167,143	176,405
Income tax expense	182,473	49,300	52,636
Net earnings (loss)	(107,733)	117,843	123,769
Less: net earnings attributable to noncontrolling interests	781	214	789
Net earnings (loss) attributable to Vishay stockholders	$ (108,514)	$ 117,629	$ 122,980
Basic earnings (loss) per share attributable to Vishay stockholders:	$ (0.73)	$ 0.80	$ 0.85
Diluted earnings (loss) per share attributable to Vishay stockholders:	$ (0.73)	$ 0.77	$ 0.81
Weighted average shares outstanding - basic	147,700	147,567	144,963
Weighted average shares outstanding - diluted	147,700	153,716	151,417
Cash dividends per share	$ 0.24	$ 0.24	$ 0