Note 24
Financial statements - Notes to the consolidated financial statements
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2005 1
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24 PENSIONS AND OTHER RETIREMENT BENEFITS
Ahold has a number of defined benefit pension plans covering a substantial number of employees within the U.S. and
the Netherlands. All plans have been established in accordance with applicable legal requirements, customs and existing
circumstances in each country. Generally, the plans are average salary pension plans. In addition, Ahold provides life
insurance and medical care benefits for certain retired employees meeting age and service requirements at its U.S.
subsidiaries. The Company funds these plans as claims are incurred. The Company also participates in various multi-employer
pension plans in the U.S.
The components of the pension and other retirement benefits can be summarized as follows:
January 1,
January 2,
2006
2005
U.S. pension plans
175
336
U.S. other benefit plans
159
140
Dutch pension plans
258
257
Defined benefit plans continuing operations
592
733
Defined benefit plans discontinued operations
44
Total defined benefit plans
592
777
Defined contribution pension plans
7
40
Total pensions and other retirement benefits
599
817
The following table provides a summary of the funded status of all defined benefit plans throughout Ahold as well as the
amounts not yet recognized in the statements of operations, the amounts recognized in the balance sheets and the experience
adjustments on defined benefit obligations and plan assets:
2004
Defined benefit obligations at year-end
(4,110)
(3,547)
Fair value of plan assets at year-end
3,324
2,549
Surplus/(Deficit)
(786)
(998)
Unrecognized actuarial loss
198
224
Unrecognized past service cost
(4)
(3)
Net assets/(liability)
(592)
(777)
Non-current pension and other retirement benefits provisions
(604)
(740)
Non-current pension and other retirement benefits assets
12
7
Pension and other retirement benefits in liabilities related to assets held for sale
(44)
Total
(592)
(777)
Experience adjustments on defined benefit obligations
(70)
47
Experience adjustments on plan assets
220
89
Ahold applies the corridor approach in recognizing actuarial gains/(losses). If the net cumulative unrecognized actuarial gains/
(losses) of a plan at year-end exceed 10% of the greater of the defined benefit obligation or the fair value of the plan assets at
that date, a portion of the excess is recognized in net periodic benefit cost in the next year. The portion to be recognized is
determined by dividing the excess by the average remaining working lives of the employees participating in that plan.
Because of the significance of defined benefit plans in the U.S. and the Netherlands and the different assumptions applicable
to these plans, in the remainder of this note the U.S. defined benefit plans (in the aggregate) are shown separately from the
Dutch defined benefit plans (in the aggregate). The tables show the changes in benefit obligations and plan assets, the funded
status of the plans and the components of net periodic benefit cost. Life insurance and medical care plans in the U.S. are
presented as 'other benefit plans' in the tables below.
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