Employee Benefits

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2023

Employee Benefits [Abstract]

Employee Benefits

15. Employee Benefits

Defined Contribution Plans

We maintain various defined contribution plans, which include profit sharing, and provide retirement benefits for substantially all of our employees. Matching obligations, in connection with the plans which are funded in cash and typically contributed to the plans in March of the following year, are as follows (in thousands):

	U.S. Defined Contribution
Year ended December 31,
2023	$	10,510
2022		10,180
2021		9,763

We maintain a defined contribution Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan for key employees.  Under the plan, these employees may elect to defer a portion of their compensation and, in addition, we may at our discretion make contributions to the plan on behalf of the employees.  In March 2023 and 2022, contributions of $0.8 million were made related to calendar years 2022 and 2021, respectively. As of December 31, 2023, we have recorded an obligation of $0.6 million for 2023.

We also have an Employee Stock Ownership Plan and Trust (“ESOP”) for employees who are not covered by a collective bargaining agreement.  In connection therewith, we maintain an employee benefits trust to which we contribute shares of treasury stock.  We are authorized to instruct the trustees to distribute such shares toward the satisfaction of our future obligations under the plan. The shares held in trust are not considered outstanding for purposes of calculating earnings per share until they are committed to be released. The trustees will vote the shares in accordance with its fiduciary duties.  During 2023, we contributed to the trust an additional 72,800 shares from our treasury and released 72,800 shares from the trust leaving 200 shares remaining in the trust as of December 31, 2023.  The provision for expense in connection with the ESOP was approximately $3 million in 2023, $2.3 million in 2022 and $2.5 million in 2021.

Defined Benefit Pension Plan

We maintain a defined benefit unfunded Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan (“SERP”).  The SERP, as amended, is a defined benefit plan pursuant to which we will pay supplemental pension benefits to certain key employees upon the attainment of a contractual participant’s payment date based upon the employees’ years of service and compensation.  As there are no current participants in the SERP, there was no benefit obligation outstanding related to the plan as of December 31, 2023 and 2022 and we recorded no expense related to the plan during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021.

Postretirement Medical Benefits

We provide certain medical and dental care benefits to 14 former U.S. union employees. The postretirement medical and dental benefit obligation for the former union employees as of December 31, 2023, and the net periodic benefit cost for our postretirement benefit plans for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 were not material.