Employee Benefit Plans

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2018

Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits Cost (Reversal of Cost) [Abstract]

Employee Benefit Plans

EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

Employee Stock Purchase Plan

We have an employee stock purchase plan (the “ESPP”), under which we are authorized to issue 5.0 million shares of Class A common stock. As of December 31, 2018, we had approximately 2.5 million shares of Class A common stock which remain available for issuance under the ESPP. Generally, all full-time employees who have been employed by EchoStar for at least one calendar quarter are eligible to participate in the ESPP. Employee stock purchases are made through payroll deductions. Under the terms of the ESPP, each employee’s deductions are limited so that the maximum they may purchase under the ESPP is $25,000 in fair value of Class A common stock per year. Stock purchases are made on the last business day of each calendar quarter at 85.0% of the closing price of the Class A common stock on that date. For the years ended December 31, 2018, 2017 and 2016, employee purchases of Class A common stock through the ESPP totaled approximately 245,000 shares, 176,000 shares and 227,000 shares, respectively.

401(k) Employee Savings Plans

Under the EchoStar 401(k) Plan (“the Plan”), eligible employees are entitled to contribute up to 75.0% of their eligible compensation subject to the maximum contribution limit provided by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). Eligible employees have the option to contribute up to 75% of their eligible compensation on a pre-tax and/or after-tax basis subject to the Code limits. All employee contributions to the Plan are immediately vested. We match 50 cents on the dollar for the first 6.0% of each employee’s salary contributions to the Plan for a total of 3.0% match on a pre-tax basis up to a maximum of $7,500 annually. Our match is calculated each pay period there is an employee contribution. In addition, we may make an annual discretionary contribution to the Plan to be made in cash or our stock. Our contributions under the Plan vest at 20.0% per year and are 100.0% vested after an eligible employee has completed five years of employment. Forfeitures of unvested participant balances may be used to fund matching and discretionary contributions.

During the years ended December 31, 2018, 2017 and 2016, we recognized matching contributions, net of forfeitures, of $5 million, $5 million and $6 million, respectively, and made discretionary contributions of shares of our Class A common stock, net of forfeitures, with a fair value of $8 million, $7 million and $8 million, respectively (approximately 127,000, 130,000 and 210,500 shares, respectively), to the Plan.