Albertsons 2007 Annual Report Download - page 114

SU
PERVAL
U
IN
C
. and
S
ubsidiaries
N
OTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS—(Continued)
provisions or at the discretion of the Compan
y
’s Retirement Committee. Total contribution expenses for these
plans were
$
83,
$
16 and
$
18 for fiscal 2007, 2006 and 2005, respectively. Plan assets also include 4 and 3 share
s
o
f the Company’s common stock at February 24, 2007 and February 25, 2006, respectively.
P
ost-Employment Benefits
T
he Compan
y
reco
g
nizes an obli
g
ation for benefits provided to former or inactive emplo
y
ees. The Compan
y
is
self-insured for certain of its employees’ short-term and long-term disability plans, which are the primar
y
b
ene
fi
ts pa
id
to
i
nact
i
ve emp
l
oyees pr
i
or to ret
i
rement
.
At February 24, 2007, the obligation for post-employment benefits was
$
85 with
$
23 included in Accrue
d
v
acation, compensation and benefits and
$
62 included in Other liabilities.
M
ulti-Employer Plan
s
T
he Compan
y
also participates in several multi-emplo
y
er plans providin
g
defined benefits to union emplo
y
ee
s
u
nder the provisions of collective bargaining agreements. These plans require the Company to mak
e
contributions thereto as negotiated in such collective bargaining agreements. The Company contributed
$
122,
$
37 and $37 to these plans for fiscal 2007, 2006 and 2005, respectivel
y
. Currentl
y
, some of these plans ar
e
u
nderfunded in that the
p
resent value of accrued liabilities exceeds the current value of the assets held in trust to
pay
b
ene
fi
ts. I
f
t
h
e Company were to ex
i
t certa
i
n mar
k
ets or ot
h
erw
i
se cease ma
ki
ng contr
ib
ut
i
ons to t
h
ese p
l
an
s
a
t this time, it could tri
gg
er a withdrawal liabilit
y
that would require the Compan
y
to fund its proportionate share
o
f a plan’s unfunded vested benefits. There are many variables that affect future funding requirements such as
i
n
v
estment returns an
db
ene
fi
t
l
e
v
e
l
s.
C
ollective Bargaining Agreements
At Februar
y
24, 2007, the Compan
y
had approximatel
y
191,400 emplo
y
ees. Approximatel
y
117,000 emplo
y
ees
a
re covered by collective bargaining agreements. During fiscal 2007, 33 collective bargaining agreement
s
covering approximately 25,500 employees were re-negotiated. During fiscal 2008, 69 collective bargaining
ag
reements coverin
g
approximatel
y
43,200 emplo
y
ees will expire
.
NOTE 16—COMMITMENTS
,
CONTINGENCIES AND OFF-BALANCE SHEET ARRANGEMENT
S
T
he Company has guaranteed certain leases, fixture financing loans and other debt obligations of various retailer
s
a
tFe
b
ruary 24, 2007. T
h
ese guarantees were genera
ll
yma
d
e to support t
h
e
b
us
i
ness growt
h
o
f
a
ffili
ate
d
reta
il
ers
.
T
he
g
uarantees are
g
enerall
y
for the entire terms of the leases or other debt obli
g
ations with remainin
g
terms that
range from less than one year to 20 years, with a weighted average remaining term of approximately 12 years.
F
or eac
h
guarantee
i
ssue
d
,
if
t
h
ea
ffili
ate
d
reta
il
er
d
e
f
au
l
ts on a payment, t
h
e Company wou
ld b
e requ
i
re
d
t
o
make pa
y
ments under its
g
uarantee. Generall
y
, the
g
uarantees are secured b
y
indemnification a
g
reements o
r
personal guarantees of the affiliated retailer. At February 24, 2007, the maximum amount of undiscounte
d
payments t
h
e Company wou
ld b
e requ
i
re
d
to ma
k
e
i
nt
h
e event o
fd
e
f
au
l
to
f
a
ll
guarantees was approx
i
mate
ly
$
215 and represented approximatel
y
$141 on a discounted basis. No amount has been recorded in th
e
C
onsolidated Balance Sheets for these contingent obligations under the Company’s guarantee arrangements
.
T
he Compan
y
is contin
g
entl
y
liable for leases that have been assi
g
ned to various third parties in connection wit
h
f
acility closings and dispositions. The Company could be required to satisfy the obligations under the leases i
f
a
ny o
f
t
h
e ass
i
gnees are una
bl
eto
f
u
lfill
t
h
e
i
r
l
ease o
bli
gat
i
ons. Due to t
h
ew
id
e
di
str
ib
ut
i
on o
f
t
h
e Company’
s
a
ssi
g
nments amon
g
third parties, and various other remedies available, the Compan
y
believes the likelihood tha
t
it will be required to assume a material amount of these obligations is remote.
F-
48