Magnetek Inc., Menomonee Falls, Wis., announced Tuesday in an SEC filing that it is in the midst of offering a lump-sum payout offer to certain participants in its defined benefit plan.
The company also announced its intention to terminate the plan “when economically feasible.” The pension fund has been frozen since 2003.
The lump-sum payout offer has gone out to 35% of the pension fund’s 8,000 participants and is being done “to reduce the size of the plan, administration costs and volatility” and to make “future annuitization less costly,” a presentation included in the 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission said.
Further information on which participants were given the offer was not made available; the results of the offer will be available in December.
As of Dec. 31, the plan had $161 million in assets and $209 million in projected benefit obligations, according to the company’s most recent 10-K filing, giving it a funding ratio of 77%.
The company said in Tuesday’s filing that its shortfall is down to an estimated $40 million but did not provide asset or liability information.
Marty J. Schwenner, vice president and chief financial officer, and Lynn Bostrom, spokeswoman, did not return phone calls by press time.
