Employee Deferred Compensation Plan Obligations

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

Deferred Compensation Plans [Abstract]

Employee Deferred Compensation Plan Obligations

Employee Deferred Compensation Plan Obligations    

The Company provides various qualified defined contribution 401(k) plans covering eligible employees. The plans offer a savings feature with the Company matching employee contributions. Assets of this plan are held by an independent trustee for the sole benefit of participating employees. Nonqualified plans are provided for employees not eligible for the qualified plans. These plans include provisions for salary deferrals and Company matching and discretionary contributions. The asset value of the nonqualified plans was $406.6 million and $398.4 million as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively. The Company holds these assets to satisfy the Company’s liabilities under its employee deferred compensation plans.

The liability value for the nonqualified plans was $435.1 million and $421.2 million as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.

Deferred compensation plan and other benefits related to the Company’s executive chairman was $91.8 million as of December 31, 2019, and was included in the liability value for the nonqualified plans. The Company paid out the full balance of this plan during the year ended December 31, 2020.

The following table presents the Company’s compensation expense related to its qualified defined contribution plans and nonqualified plans (in thousands):

	Year Ended December 31,
	2020		2019		2018
Contribution expense	$	42,092	$	26,122	$	24,184
Employee deferred compensation expense (income) related to changes in the fair value of trust assets	75,188		54,917		(11,486)
	$	117,280	$	81,039	$	12,698

The Company has statutory defined contribution plans and defined benefit plans outside the U.S., which are not material.