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(22) Retirement Benefit Plans Multiemployer Plan (Details) (Wendy's Restaurants, LLC [Member], Union Pension Fund [Member], USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified | 12 Months Ended
--- | ---
Jan. 01, 2012 H | Jan. 02, 2011 | Jan. 03, 2010
Cost of sales [Member] |  |  |  |  |  |
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items] |  |  |  |  |  |
Multiemployer plan, withdrawal obligation |  |  |  |  | $ 4,975 |
New CBA [Member] |  |  |  |  |  |
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items] |  |  |  |  |  |
Multiemployer plan, period contributions | 781 | [1] | 766 | [1] | 641 | [1]
Multiemployer plans, certified zone status | Green | [2] | Green | [2] |  |
Increase (decrease) in limits on actuarial value of assets, percentage | 130.00% |  |  |  |  |
Multiemployer plans, minimum contribution, per hour | 2.73 |  |  |  |  |
Multiemployer plans, hours of employment, expected | 308,000 |  |  |  |  |
Multiemployer plans, minimum annual contribution, expected | 840 |  |  |  |  |
New CBA [Member] | Cost of sales [Member] |  |  |  |  |  |
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items] |  |  |  |  |  |
Multiemployer plan, additional expense Incurred |  |  | 900 |  |  |
Multiemployer plan, period contributions |  |  | $ 600 |  |  |
[1] | In accordance with the terms of the New CBA, the Companies are required to make minimum contributions of $2.73 per hour of employment for each employee covered under the Union Pension Fund. As of January 1, 2012, based on approximately 308,000 hours of expected employment, the Companies’ minimum annual contribution to the Union Pension Fund would be $840.
[2] | The Union Pension Fund elected an expanded asset smoothing period of 10 years for the investment loss incurred in the plan year ended December 31, 2008 and an increase in the limits on the actuarial value of the assets to 130% of market value for the plan years beginning January 1, 2009 and 2010, as permitted under the Preservation of Access to Care for Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension Relief Act of 2010. The Union Pension Plan certified its zone status after making this election.

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- Definition Amount of contributions made to multiemployer plans for each period for which a statement of income is presented. An employer may disclose total contributions to multiemployer plans without disaggregating the amounts attributable to pension plans and other postretirement benefit plans. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) -Number 132R -Paragraph 12 -LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy. Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -SubTopic 80 -Topic 715 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6958064&loc=d3e29142-114947 + Details
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- Definition Amount of a recognized obligation to a multiemployer plan in the event that the employer withdraws from the plan. In some situations, withdrawal from a multiemployer plan may result in an employer having an obligation to the plan for a portion of the unfunded benefit obligation of the pension plans and other postretirement benefit plans. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) -Number 132R -Paragraph 13 -LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy. + Details
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- Definition Increase (Decrease) in Limits on Actuarial Value of Assets, Percentage + References No definition available. + Details
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- Definition Multiemployer Pans, Hours of Employment, Expected + References No definition available. + Details
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- Definition Multiemployer Plan, Additional Expense Incurred + References No definition available. + Details
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- Definition Indicate the multiemployer plan's certified zone status as currently required by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 or a subsequent amendment thereof. The zone status categories are red (critical status), orange (seriously endangered), yellow (endangered), and green (none of the above). The acceptable values are "red", "orange", "yellow", "green", "other", and "NA". A multiemployer plan is a pension or postretirement benefit plan to which two or more unrelated employers contribute where assets contributed by one participating employer may be used to provide benefits to employees of other participating employers. + References No definition available. + Details
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- Definition Multiemployer Plans, Minimum Annual Contribution, Expected + References No definition available. + Details
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- Definition Multiemployer Plans, Minimum Contribution, Per Hour + References No definition available. + Details
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