Express 2014 Annual Report Download - page 68

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12. Retirement Benefits
The employees of the Company, if eligible, participate in a qualified defined contribution retirement plan (the
“Qualified Plan”) and a non-qualified supplemental retirement plan (the “Non-Qualified Plan”) sponsored by the
Company.
Participation in the Company’s Qualified Plan is available to employees who meet certain age and service
requirements. The Qualified Plan permits employees to elect contributions up to the maximum limits allowable
under the Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”). The Company matches employee contributions according to a pre-
determined formula. Prior to 2014, the Company contributed additional discretionary amounts based on a
percentage of the employees’ eligible annual compensation and years of service. This discretionary contribution
was discontinued effective for the 2014 plan year. Employee contributions and Company matching contributions
vest immediately. Additional discretionary Company contributions and the related investment earnings are
subject to vesting based on years of service.
Total expense recognized related to the Qualified Plan employer match was $3.1 million, $3.1 million, and $2.7
million in 2014, 2013, and 2012, respectively. In addition, the Company recognized expense of $4.8 million and
$5.4 million, related to discretionary contributions to the Qualified Plan, in 2013 and 2012, respectively.
Participation in the Non-Qualified Plan is made available to employees who meet certain age, service, job level,
and compensation requirements. The Non-Qualified Plan is an unfunded plan which provides benefits beyond the
IRC limits for qualified defined contribution plans. The plan permits employees to elect contributions up to a
maximum percentage of eligible compensation. The Company matches employee contributions according to a
pre-determined formula. The Non-Qualified Plan also previously credited additional amounts based on a
percentage of the employees’ eligible compensation and years of service, but this portion of the plan was
discontinued effective for the 2014 plan year. In addition, the Non-Qualified Plan permits employees to defer
additional compensation up to a maximum amount. The Company does not match the contributions for additional
deferred compensation. Employees’ accounts are credited with interest using a rate determined annually by the
Retirement Plan Committee based on a methodology consistent with historical practices. Employee contributions
and the related interest vest immediately. Company contributions and the related interest are subject to vesting
based on years of service. Employees may elect an in-service distribution for the additional deferred
compensation component only. Employees are not permitted to take a withdrawal from any other portion of the
Non-Qualified Plan while actively employed with the Company. The remaining vested portion of employees’
accounts in the Non-Qualified Plan will be distributed upon termination of employment in either a lump sum or
in equal annual installments over a specified period of up to 10 years. Total expense recognized related to the
Non-Qualified Plan was $1.5 million, $2.6 million, and $3.5 million in 2014, 2013, and 2012, respectively.
The Company elected to account for this cash balance plan based on the participant account balances, excluding
actuarial considerations, as permitted by the applicable authoritative guidance.
The annual activity for the Company’s Non-Qualified Plan, was as follows:
January 31, 2015 February 1, 2014
(in thousands)
Balance, beginning of period .............. $25,753 $24,089
Contributions:
Employee ......................... 1,273 1,460
Company .......................... 836 1,758
Interest ............................... 1,387 1,307
Distributions ........................... (1,904) (2,861)
Forfeitures ............................. (89) —
Balance, end of period ................... $27,256 $25,753
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