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EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2021
Retirement Benefits [Abstract]  
EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS
 
Four qualified defined-benefit plans, one non-qualified defined-benefit plan, and seven defined-contribution retirement plans cover various employee groups of Alaska, Horizon and McGee Air Services.

The defined-benefit plans provide benefits based on an employee’s term of service and average compensation for a specified period of time before retirement. The qualified defined-benefit pension plans are closed to new entrants.
 
Accounting standards require recognition of the overfunded or underfunded status of an entity’s defined-benefit pension and other post-retirement plan as an asset or liability in the consolidated financial statements and requires recognition of the funded status in AOCL.
 
Qualified Defined-Benefit Pension Plans

The Company’s four qualified defined-benefit pension plans are funded as required by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. The defined-benefit plan assets consist primarily of marketable equity and fixed-income securities. The work groups covered by qualified defined-benefit pension plans include salaried employees, pilots, clerical, office, passenger service employees, mechanics and related craft employees. The Company uses a December 31 measurement date for these plans. All plans are closed to new entrants.
Weighted average assumptions used to determine benefit obligations:

The rates below vary by plan and related work group.
 20212020
Discount rates
2.82% to 2.90%
2.43% to 2.58%
Rate of compensation increases
2.02% to 2.38%
2.02% to 2.43%

Weighted average assumptions used to determine net periodic benefit cost:

The rates below vary by plan and related work group.
 202120202019
Discount rates
2.43% to 2.58%
3.33% to 3.47%
4.37% to 4.46%
Expected return on plan assets
3.00% to 5.50%
3.25% to 5.50%
4.25% to 5.50%
Rate of compensation increases
2.02% to 2.43%
2.11% to 5.44%
2.11% to 3.50%

The discount rates are determined using current interest rates earned on high-quality, long-term bonds with maturities that correspond with the estimated cash distributions from the pension plans. At December 31, 2021, the Company selected discount rates for each of the plans using a pool of higher-yielding bonds estimated to be more reflective of settlement rates, as management has taken steps to ultimately terminate or settle plans that are frozen and move toward freezing benefits in active plans in the future. In determining the expected return on plan assets, the Company assesses the current level of expected returns on risk-free investments (primarily government bonds), the historical level of the risk premium associated with the other asset classes in which the portfolio is invested and the expectations for future returns of each asset class. The expected return for each asset class is then weighted based on the target asset allocation to develop the expected long-term rate of return on assets assumption for the portfolio.

Plan assets are invested in common commingled trust funds invested in equity and fixed income securities and in certain real estate assets. The target and actual asset allocation of the funds in the qualified defined-benefit plans, by asset category, are as follows: 
Salaried Plan(a)
All Other Plans
 Target20212020Target20212020
Asset category:  
Domestic equity securities
2%-12%
7 %7 %
32%-42%
38 %44 %
Non-U.S. equity securities
—%-8%
3 %3 %
11%-21%
16 %18 %
Fixed income securities
85%-95%
90 %90 %
32%-52%
42 %33 %
Real estate
—%
— %— %
—%-5%
4 %5 %
Plan assets100 %100 %100 %100 %
(a)As our Salaried Plan is frozen and fully funded, our investment strategies differ significantly from that of our other outstanding plans. Investments are in lower-risk securities, with earnings designed to maintain a fully-funded status.

The Company’s investment policy focuses on achieving maximum returns at a reasonable risk for pension assets over a full market cycle. The Company determines the strategic allocation between equities, fixed income and real estate based on current funded status and other characteristics of the plans. As the funded status improves, the Company increases the fixed income allocation of the portfolio and decreases the equity allocation. Actual asset allocations are reviewed regularly and periodically rebalanced as appropriate.

Plan assets invested in common commingled trust funds are fair valued using the net asset values of these funds to determine fair value as allowed using the practical expedient method outlined in the accounting standards. Fair value estimates for real estate are calculated using the present value of expected future cash flows based on independent appraisals, local market conditions and current and projected operating performance.
Plan assets by fund category (in millions):
 20212020Fair Value Hierarchy
Fund type:  
U.S. equity market fund$885 $914 1
Non-U.S. equity fund370 384 1
Credit bond index fund1,342 1,088 1
Plan assets in common commingled trusts$2,597 $2,386 
Real estate92 96 (a)
Cash equivalents6 6 1
Total plan assets$2,695 $2,488 
(a)In accordance with Subtopic 820-10, certain investments that are measured at net asset value per share (or its equivalent) have not been classified in the fair value hierarchy.

The following table sets forth the status of the qualified defined-benefit pension plans (in millions):
 20212020
Projected benefit obligation (PBO)  
Beginning of year$2,934 $2,602 
Service cost56 52 
Interest cost56 75 
Actuarial (gain)/loss(171)339 
Benefits paid(117)(134)
End of year$2,758 $2,934 
Plan assets at fair value  
Beginning of year$2,488 $2,239 
Actual return on plan assets224 383 
Employer contributions100 — 
Benefits paid(117)(134)
End of year$2,695 $2,488 
Unfunded status$(63)$(446)
Percent funded98 %85 %
 
The accumulated benefit obligation for the combined qualified defined-benefit pension plans was $2.7 billion and $2.8 billion at December 31, 2021 and 2020. During 2021 actuarial gains decreased the benefit obligation primarily due to the increase in discount rates.

The amounts recognized in the consolidated balance sheets (in millions): 
 20212020
Accrued benefit liability-long term$(155)$(502)
Plan assets-long term (within Other noncurrent assets)92 51 
Total liability recognized$(63)$(451)
 
The amounts not yet reflected in net periodic benefit cost and included in AOCL (in millions):
 20212020
Prior service credit$(4)$(5)
Net loss316 626 
Amount recognized in AOCL (pretax)$312 $621 
Defined benefit plans with projected benefit obligations and accumulated benefit obligations exceeding fair value of plan assets are as follows (in millions):
 20212020
Projected benefit obligation$1,750 $2,207 
Accumulated benefit obligation1,685 2,057 
Fair value of plan assets1,595 1,710 

Net pension expense for the qualified defined-benefit plans included the following components (in millions): 
 202120202019
Service cost$52 $46 $42 
Interest cost56 75 89 
Restructuring charges(a)
— 11 — 
Expected return on assets(122)(110)(95)
Amortization of prior service credit(1)(1)(1)
Recognized actuarial loss37 35 37 
Net pension expense$22 $56 $72 
(a)In conjunction with the workforce reductions stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company recorded additional expense for employees accepting incentive leaves of absence. Such expense is included in Special items - restructuring charges on the consolidated statement of operations for the year-ended December 31, 2020.

There are no current statutory funding requirements for the Company’s plans in 2022.
 
Future benefits expected to be paid over the next ten years under the qualified defined-benefit pension plans from the assets of those plans (in millions): 
Total
2022$119 
2023128 
2024133 
2025149 
2026151 
2027– 2031830 
 
Nonqualified Defined-Benefit Pension Plan
 
Alaska also maintains an unfunded, noncontributory defined-benefit plan for certain elected officers. This plan uses a December 31 measurement date. The assumptions used to determine benefit obligations and the net period benefit cost for the nonqualified defined-benefit pension plan are similar to those used to calculate the qualified defined-benefit pension plan. The plan's unfunded status, PBO and accumulated benefit obligation are immaterial. The net pension expense in prior year and expected future expense is also immaterial.

Post-retirement Medical Benefits
 
The Company allows certain retirees to continue their medical, dental and vision benefits by paying all or a portion of the active employee plan premium until eligible for Medicare, currently age 65. This results in a subsidy to retirees, because the premiums received by the Company are less than the actual cost of the retirees’ claims. The accumulated post-retirement benefit obligation for this subsidy is unfunded. The accumulated post-retirement benefit obligation was $125 million and $138 million at December 31, 2021 and 2020. The net periodic benefit cost was not material in 2021 or 2020.
Defined-Contribution Plans

The seven defined-contribution plans are deferred compensation plans under section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code. All of these plans require Company contributions. Total expense for the defined-contribution plans was $125 million, $126 million and $132 million in 2021, 2020, and 2019.  

The Company also has a noncontributory, unfunded defined-contribution plan for certain elected officers of the Company who are ineligible for the nonqualified defined-benefit pension plan. Amounts recorded as liabilities under the plan are not material to the consolidated balance sheets at December 31, 2021 and 2020.

Pilot Long-term Disability Benefits

Alaska maintains a long-term disability plan for its pilots. The long-term disability plan does not have a service requirement. Therefore, the liability is calculated based on estimated future benefit payments associated with pilots that were assumed to be disabled on a long-term basis as of December 31, 2021 and does not include any assumptions for future disability. The liability includes the discounted expected future benefit payments and medical costs.  The total liability was $77 million and $61 million, which was recorded net of a prefunded trust account of $8 million and $7 million, and included in long-term other liabilities on the consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020.

Employee Incentive-Pay Plans
 
The Company has employee incentive plans that pay employees based on certain financial and operational metrics. These metrics are set and approved annually by the Compensation and Leadership Development Committee of the Board of Directors. The aggregate expense under these plans in 2021, 2020 and 2019 was $151 million, $130 million and $163 million. The incentive plans are summarized below.
 
•Performance-Based Pay (PBP) is a program that rewards the majority of Alaska and Horizon employees. The program is based on various metrics that adjust periodically, including those related to Air Group profitability, cash flow metrics, safety, and sustainability.

•The Operational Performance Rewards Program (OPR) entitles the majority of Alaska and Horizon employees to quarterly payouts of up to $450 per person if certain monthly operational and customer service objectives are met.