Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits

9 Months Ended

Oct. 01, 2011

Compensation and Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]

Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits Disclosure [Text Block]

Note 6 – Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits

Defined Benefit Plans

Employees of VPG participate in various defined benefit pension and other postretirement benefit plans.

Prior to July 6, 2010, certain employees of VPG in the United States and the United Kingdom have participated in defined benefit pension and other postretirement plans sponsored by Vishay Intertechnology. The annual cost of the Vishay Intertechnology defined benefit plans was allocated to all of the participating businesses based upon a specific actuarial computation, and accordingly, is reflected in the accompanying combined and consolidated condensed statements of operations.

VPG assumed most of the obligations for employees in the United States and the United Kingdom that were employed by VPG after the spin-off, and accordingly, those obligations are included in VPG’s consolidated condensed balance sheets. An allocation of plan assets is also reflected in the disclosures below for the periods prior to July 6, 2010. Plan assets were transferred to VPG as of the spin-off and invested in money market funds and company-owned life insurance policies.

Vishay Intertechnology’s principal qualified U.S. pension plan, the Vishay Retirement Plan (“VRP”), was frozen effective January 1, 2009 and participants no longer accrue benefits. Given the frozen nature of the VRP, participants who became employees of VPG at the spin-off became terminated, vested participants of the VRP as of the spin-off date and Vishay Intertechnology retained the related pension obligations.

Employees who participated in the Vishay Nonqualified Retirement Plan who became employees of VPG at the spin-off transferred into the newly created Vishay Precision Group Nonqualified Retirement Plan. The Vishay Nonqualified Retirement Plan was frozen effective January 1, 2009. Accordingly, the Vishay Precision Group Nonqualified Retirement Plan is also frozen and participants do not continue to accrue benefits.

The Vishay Precision Group Nonqualified Retirement Plan, like all nonqualified plans, is considered to be unfunded. VPG maintains a nonqualified trust, referred to as a “rabbi” trust, to fund benefits under this plan. Rabbi trust assets are subject to creditor claims under certain conditions and are not the property of employees. Therefore, they are accounted for as other noncurrent assets. Effective July 6, 2010, Vishay Intertechnology deposited an allocation of assets into a newly created rabbi trust for VPG. The consolidated condensed balance sheets include these rabbi trust assets of $1.3 million at October 1, 2011 and $1.4 million at December 31, 2010, which approximate the pension liability at those dates.

The following table sets forth the components of net periodic cost of pension and other postretirement benefit plans (in thousands):

	Fiscal quarter ended					Fiscal quarter ended
	October 1, 2011					October 2, 2010
	Pension			OPEB		Pension			OPEB
	Plans			Plans		Plans			Plans
Net service cost	$	126		$	9	$	63		$	9
Interest cost		225			34		203			34
Expected return on plan assets		(153	)		-		(128	)		-
Amortization of actuarial losses		1			11		2			8
Net periodic benefit cost	$	199		$	54	$	140		$	51
	Nine fiscal months ended					Nine fiscal months ended
	October 1, 2011					October 2, 2010
	Pension			OPEB		Pension			OPEB
	Plans			Plans		Plans			Plans
Net service cost	$	374		$	29	$	187		$	27
Interest cost		675			104		605			102
Expected return on plan assets		(459	)		-		(381	)		-
Amortization of actuarial losses		2			35		7			24
Net periodic benefit cost	$	592		$	168	$	418		$	153

Other Retirement Obligations

Prior to July 6, 2010, certain key employees participated in a nonqualified deferred compensation plan sponsored by Vishay Intertechnology. These employees transferred to a newly created nonqualified deferred compensation plan of VPG. The accompanying consolidated condensed balance sheets include a liability within other noncurrent liabilities related to these deferrals. Vishay Intertechnology maintained a nonqualified trust, referred to as a “rabbi” trust, to fund payments under this plan. Rabbi trust assets are subject to creditor claims under certain conditions and are not the property of employees. Therefore, they are accounted for as other noncurrent assets. Effective July 6, 2010, Vishay Intertechnology deposited an allocation of assets into a newly created rabbi trust for VPG. The consolidated condensed balance sheets include these rabbi trust assets of $2.7 million at October 1, 2011 and $2.6 million at December 31, 2010, which amounts approximate VPG’s liability under this plan at those dates.