IAS 19 Employee Benefits

IAS 19 Employee Benefits

IAS 19 Employee Benefits

Types of Employee Benefits

Common monetary and non-monetary benefits:

Monetary benefit:

  • Wages, salary and bonus
  • Compensated absence (holiday pay, sick leave, maternity leave, jury service and study leave)
  • Long service leave or benefits
  • Long term disability benefits
  • Per IFRS 2 Share based payment (IFRS2)

Non-monetary salary:

  • Benefits in kind (Medical care, housing, cars etc)

Accounting treatment:

Dr Staff costs

Cr Cash/Liability

Termination payments:

This can be in the form of restructuring expense and if there is any payment exceeding 1 year, discounting is needed.

IAS 37 Provisions, contingent liabilities and contingent assets standard could be referred to.

Post-employment benefit (Pensions):

  • Defined contribution scheme (benefits to employees are not fixed and the employer pays a fixed amount (ie 6% of employee salaries into a pension plan each month))
  • Defined benefit scheme (benefits to employees are fixed, ie benefits = salary at retirement x (number of years worked/60 years))

Paid leave

  • The paid leave can be either accumulated - can be carried forward to the next year or
  • Not accumulated - cannot be carried forward to the next year. If the unused paid leave days can’t be accumulated, no accounting treatment is needed at the year end.

Example:

Employee A has 10 paid leave days (compensating absence) and during the year, he has used 8 days already with 2 days being carried forward to the next year.

The annual salary for employee A is $250,000 and there are 250 available working days during the year.

Required

Accounting treatment for the unused paid leave days.

Answer:

As at the year-end:

Dr Staff costs $2,000

Cr Accrued expense ($250,000/250days x 2) $2,000

The use of 8 days as paid leave should also be accounted for by

Dr Staff costs

Cr Accrued expense

Next year:

Dr Accrued expense $2,000

Cr Bank $2,000


Exam standard question – paid leave

The salaried employees of Ashanti are entitled to 25 days paid leave each year. The entitlement accrues evenly over the year and unused leave may be carried forward for one year. The holiday year is the same as the financial year. At 30 April 2014, Ashanti has 900 salaried employees and the average unused holiday entitlement is three days per employee. 5% of employees leave without taking their entitlement and there is no cash payment when an employee leaves in respect of holiday entitlement. There are 255 working days in the year and the total annual salary cost is $19 million. No adjustment has been made in the financial statements for the above and there was no opening accrual required for holiday entitlement.

Required:

Accounting Treatment.

Answer:

Dr Staff costs $0.21m

Cr Payables * $0.21m

* Total cost = $19m

  • Total working days= 255days x 900 employees= 229,500days
  • Cost/working day= $19m/229,500days= $83/day
  • 900employees x 3days/employee x 95% x$83/day= $0.21m


Pension schemes

1. Defined contribution scheme:

  • Payments to retired employees are not guaranteed by the employer.
  • Employer and employee invest in the scheme in each period, ie each month, which is operated by the trustee.
  • Retired employees are not paid when the scheme runs a deficit, whilst they are paid if the scheme runs a surplus.
  • Employer has no further obligations when payments are invested into the scheme at each period.
  • Risks are therefore transferred to employees when the scheme is invested. Therefore, no pension assets or liabilities are recognised in employer’s account.

Accounting treatment (by employer):

Dr Staff costs

Cr Accrued expense/Bank


2. Defined benefit scheme:

  • Payments to retired employees are guaranteed by the employer. The payment is usually based on the salary of employee at retirement and the number of years served in the business.
  • Employer and employee invest in the scheme in each period, ie each month, which is operated by the trustee.
  • Retired employees are paid irrespective whether the scheme runs a deficit or a surplus. If the scheme runs a deficit, employer is required to make additional payments to make up the deficit and this is a common situation.
  • If the scheme runs a surplus, no further action is required from the employer.
  • Risks are not transferred to trustee or employees when the scheme is invested and hence pension assets and liabilities are recognised in employer’s account. This is according to the substance over form concept, ie the substance of the transaction is where employers are still bearing risks and rewards of the pension scheme while the form is where the scheme is transferred to the trustee.
  • A detailed reconciliation of defined benefits pension assets and liabilities are required.

The sensitivity analysis description of how the defined benefit scheme may affect the timing and uncertainty of the entity’s future cash flows should also be disclosed, for example, sensitivity of one year increase in life expectancy may increase the staff costs and pension liability by $65 million.

Example of reconciliation:

Pension asset

Pension liability

Opening balance

Opening balance

Return on pension asset

Interest cost

Contributions in

Service cost

Benefits paid

Benefits paid

Actuarial gains/losses

Actuarial gains/losses

Closing balance

Closing balance


Accounting entries:

Pension asset

Accounting entries

Notes

Opening balance

Return on pension asset

Dr Pension asset

Cr P/L

  • Discount rate at the year start should be used.

Contributions in

Dr Pension asset

Cr Bank

  • Only cash element in the statement of cash flows

Benefits paid

Dr Pension liability

Cr Pension asset

  • Same journal entry in pension liability

Expected closing balance

  • Calculated by employer

Actuarial gains/losses**

  • Known as ‘remeasurement component’
  • The net amount of actuarial gains/losses from pension assets and liabilities are shown in ‘other comprehensive income (OCI) and capital reserve’

Closing balance

  • Usually calculated by the actuary and the net amount of pension asset and liability is shown in the statement of financial position.


Pension liability

Accounting entries

Notes

Opening balance

Interest cost

Dr P/L

Cr Pension liability

  • Discount rate at the year start should be used.

Service costs*

Dr P/L

Cr Pension liability

Include:

  • Current and past service costs
  • Curtailment
  • Settlement gains/losses

Benefits paid

Dr Pension liability

Cr Pension asset

  • Same journal entry in pension asset

Expected closing balance

  • Calculated by employer

Actuarial gains/losses**

  • Known as ‘remeasurement component’
  • The net amount of actuarial gains/losses from pension assets and liabilities are shown in ‘other comprehensive income (OCI) and capital reserve’

Closing balance

  • Usually calculated by the actuary and the net amount of pension asset and liability is shown in the statement of financial position.


*Service costs components:

  1. 1. Current service cost – increase in present value of obligation from employee service in the current period.
  2. 2. Past service cost – change in the present value of obligation from employee service in prior periods due to a change in plan or curtailment (reduce the number of employees).
  3. 3. A gain or loss on settlement – employer agrees to settle its obligation by paying compensation. Settlement gain (Dr Pension asset Cr P/L) and settlement loss (Dr P/L Cr Pension liability)

**Remeasurement components:

Net actuarial gain:

Dr Pension asset

Cr Other comprehensive income (OCI)

Net actuarial loss:

Dr Other comprehensive income (OCI)

Cr Pension liability

The asset ceiling:

  • Most defined benefit pension plans usually run deficits whilst some of them may run surpluses.
  • If there is a surplus in the defined benefit pension plan, the maximum pension asset to be recognised should not exceed the total of the present value of any economic benefits available in the form of refunds from the scheme or reductions in future contributions to the scheme.
  • This is according to the prudence concept in the conceptual framework.


Example – Defined contribution scheme

Employer makes contributions to the pension fund of employees at a rate of 10% of gross salary. The gross salary total is $3m for the year. Total contributions made by the employer is $200,000.

Required:

Accounting treatment.

Answer:

Dr Staff costs (10% x $3m) $300,000

Cr Bank $200,000

Cr Accrued expense $100,000


Example – Introductory question (Defined benefit scheme)

$m

Opening present value of pension obligation

990

Closing present value of pension obligation

1100

Opening fair value of pension asset

1000

Closing fair value of pension asset

1190

Current service cost

130

Pension benefits paid

150

Contribution paid by company

90

Discount rate at the year start

10%

The employer runs another defined contribution scheme in which it pays $30m each year end.

Required:

Accounting treatments for the above schemes.

Answer:

1. Defined benefit scheme:

Reconciliation:

Pension Asset

Pension Liability

Opening balance

1,000

Opening balance

990

Return on asset

100

Interest expense

99

Benefits paid

(150)

Benefits paid

(150)

Contribution in

90

Service cost

130

Expected closing balance

1,040

Expected closing balance

1,069

Re-measurement component

150

Re-measurement component

31

Actual closing balance

1,190

Actual closing balance

1,100

Journal entries:

  • Return on assets: Dr Pension asset $100m Cr P/L $100m
  • Interest expense: Dr P/L $99m Cr Pension liability $99m
  • Benefits paid: Dr Pension liability $150m Cr Pension asset $150m
  • Contributions in: Dr Pension asset $90m Cr Bank $90m
  • Service Cost: Dr P/L $130m Cr Pension liability $130m
  • Remeasurement component: Dr Pension asset $119m Cr OCI $119m

Presentation in the Financial Statements:

Statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income:

$m

Service cost component

130

Net interest component (99-100)

(1)

Net amount

129

Other comprehensive income (OCI)

Remeasurement component (150-39)

111

Statement of financial position:

$m

Non-current assets

Net pension asset (1,190-1,100)

90

2. Defined contribution scheme:

Dr P/L $300m

Cr Bank $300m


Example – Asset ceiling

A surplus defined benefit plan information is as follows:

$m

Fair value of pension asset

100

Present value of pension liability

30

The reduction in future contribution in the plan is only $20m.

Required:

Accounting treatment.

Answer:

The net pension asset is $100m-$30m=$70m which should be written down to the asset ceiling of $20m.

Therefore:

Dr P/L $50m

Cr Pension asset $50m


Exam standard question - Mal

Mal, a public limited company, is a leading support services company which focuses on the Human Resource Management industry.

The company would like advice on how to treat certain items under IAS 19 Employee benefits. The company operates the Mal Pension Plan B which commenced on 1 November 2012 and the Mal Pension Plan A, which was closed to new entrants from 31 October 2012, but which was open to future service accrual for the employees already in the scheme. The assets of the schemes are held separately from those of the company in funds under the control of trustees. The following information relates to the two schemes.

Mal Pension Plan A

The terms of the plan are as follows.

(i) Employees contribute 6% of their salaries to the plan.

(ii) Mal contributes, currently, the same amount to the plan for the benefit of the employees.

(iii) On retirement, employees are guaranteed a pension which is based upon the number of years’ service with the company and their final salary.

The following details relate to the plan in the year to 31 October 2013:

$m

Present value of obligation at 1 November 2012

200

Present value of obligation at 31 October 2013

240

Fair value of plan assets at 1 November 2012

190

Fair value of plan assets at 31 October 2013

225

Current service cost

20

Pension benefits paid

19

Total contributions paid to the scheme for year to 31 October 2013

17

Mal Pension Plan B

Under the terms of the plan, Mal does not guarantee any return on the contributions paid into the fund. The company’s legal and constructive obligation is limited to the amount that is contributed to the fund. The following details relate to this scheme:

$m

Fair value of plan assets at 31 October 2013

21

Contributions paid by company for year to 31 October 2013

10

The discount rate at the year start for Plan A is 5%.

The Mal Pension Plan A is wound up at the year end. The market value of the plan assets is unchanged by the curtailment. But the liability is affected. The employees departing the scheme agree to receive the plan assets in full plus a further payment of $16m. The cash was paid just before the year end.

1 year later, Mal has a new defined benefit pension scheme with new employees. This scheme is in surplus with an asset value of $100m and a liability value of $85m. And because the asset exceeds the liability, it is expected that in the future it will be possible to reduce contributions into the scheme.

The present value of the reductions in future contributions is only $10m.

Required:

  • Discusses the nature of and differences between a defined contribution plan and a defined benefit plan with specific reference to the company’s two schemes. (10 marks)
  • Shows the accounting treatment for the two Mal pension plans for the year ended 31 October 2013 under IAS 19 Employee benefits. (7 marks)
  • Show how to account for the curtailment in the financial statements. (3marks)
  • Show the effect of the above asset ceiling on the current financial statements. (3marks)

Answer:

(a)

Nature:

1. Defined contribution scheme:

  • Employer and employee pay in set amounts.
  • Pension received is determined by the success of pension fund manager.
  • Accounting entry: Dr P/L Cr Bank

2. Defined Benefit Scheme:

  • Employer contributes vary due to the need of the pension scheme to cover future liabilities.
  • Pension paid is lined to salary and length of service. E.g., 2% of final salaries for each complete service.
  • The company will employ an actuary to value the pension asset and liability at the year end and actuarial gains and losses are taken to OCI.

Difference:

1. Risks:

The risks associated with defined contribution plan are with the employees.

The risks associated with defined benefit plan are with the employers.

2. Amounts:

The future amounts paid by employer in the defined contribution scheme is not fixed but in the defined benefit scheme is fixed.

Reference:

1. Mal Plan A:

  • This is a defined benefit scheme because employees have a guaranteed pension.
  • The pension A closure is not a curtailment cost because it doesn’t affect the current employees but just the new ones.

2. Mal Plan B:

  • This is a defined contribution scheme because there is no guarantee to the employee and Mal pays a fixed amount to the scheme.

(b)

Mal Pension A:

Reconciliation:

Pension Asset

Pension Liability

Opening balance

190

Opening balance

200

Return on asset

10

Interest expense

10

Benefits paid

(19)

Benefits paid

(19)

Contribution in

17

Service cost

20

Expected closing balance

198

Expected closing balance

211

Re-measurement component

27

Re-measurement component

29

Actual closing balance

225

Actual closing balance

240

Presentation in the Financial Statements:

Statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income:

$m

Service cost component

20

Net interest component (10-10)

0

Net amount

20

Other comprehensive income (OCI)

Remeasurement component (27-29)

(2)

Statement of financial position:

$m

Non-current liabilities

Net pension liability (225-240)

15

Mal Pension B:

$10m goes into staff costs.

Dr P/L $10m

Cr Bank $10m

(C) Curtailment and settlement:

Fair value of pension assets at year end

$225m

Journal entries

Present value of obligation at year end

$(240m)

Net obligation

$15m

Dr Pension liability $15m

Further Payment

$(16)m

Cr Bank $16m

Settlement losses

$(1)m

Dr Loss on settlement $1m

(d)

$m

Journal entry

Pension asset

100

Pension liability

(85)

Net pension asset

15

De-recognition losses

(5)

Dr P/L $5m

Cr Pension asset $5m

Asset Ceiling (Present value of future reductions in the scheme)

10

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