Employee Benefits

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Compensation And Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]

Employee Benefits

9.    Employee Benefits

Defined Contribution Plans

The Company sponsors defined contribution plans, principally consisting of contributory 401(k) savings plans and noncontributory profit sharing plans. The Company’s contributions to the 401(k) savings plans consist of a matching percentage. The Company match has historically been 50 percent of the first six percent of an eligible employee’s contributions. The Company suspended its match for three months during 2020 due to COVID-19.  The Company’s total contributions to the 401(k) savings plans included in continuing operations for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, were $12.4 million, $8.0 million, and $10.8 million, respectively.

Deferred Compensation Plan

The Saia Executive Capital Accumulation Plan is a nonqualified deferred compensation plan for Saia executives. The Capital Accumulation Plan allows for the plan participants to invest in the Company’s common stock. Elections to invest in the Company’s common stock are irrevocable, and upon distribution, the funds invested in the Company’s common stock will be paid out in Company common stock rather than cash. At December 31, 2021 and 2020, the Company’s Rabbi Trust, which holds the investments for the Capital Accumulation Plan, held 94,627 and 91,888 shares of the Company’s common stock, respectively, all of which were purchased on the open market.

Annual Incentive Awards

The Company provides annual cash performance incentive awards to certain salaried employees which are based primarily on actual operating results achieved for the year, compared to targeted operating results. Operating results include performance incentives of $36.4 million, $19.0 million, and $16.0 million in 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. Included in these amounts are also incentives that are based on other targets specifically associated with the respective employees' position. Cash performance incentive awards for a year are primarily paid in the first quarter of the following year. Additionally, in July 2020, the Company paid virtually all employees a one-time $250 bonus to compensate for working through difficult conditions created by the COVID-19 pandemic. This payment totaled approximately $2.6 million.

Employee Stock Purchase Plan

In January 2003, the Company adopted the Employee Stock Purchase Plan of Saia, Inc. (the “ESPP”) allowing all eligible employees to purchase common stock of the Company at current market prices through payroll deductions of up to 10 percent of annual wages. In 2015, the Company amended the ESPP to allow highly compensated employees as defined by Section 401(a)(17) of the Internal Revenue Code to make payroll deductions of up to 20 percent of annual wages. The custodian uses the funds to purchase the Company’s common stock at current market prices. The custodian purchased 2,516; 5,682; and 8,169 shares in the open market during 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively.