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ORGANIZATION AND DESCRIPTION OF THE BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT PRESENTATION | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2013
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract] |
ORGANIZATION AND DESCRIPTION OF THE BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT PRESENTATION | ORGANIZATION AND DESCRIPTION OF THE BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT PRESENTATION Organization and Description of Business Arkansas Best Corporation (the “Company”), the parent holding company, is a freight transportation services and integrated logistics solutions provider. The Company’s principal operations are conducted through its Freight Transportation segment, which consists of ABF Freight System, Inc. and certain other subsidiaries of the Company (collectively “ABF Freight”). The Company’s other reportable operating segments are Premium Logistics & Expedited Freight Services, Domestic & Global Transportation Management, Emergency & Preventative Maintenance, and Household Goods Moving Services (see Note N). ABF Freight represented 75% of the Company’s annual revenues before other revenues and intercompany eliminations for 2013. As of December 2013, approximately 76% of ABF Freight’s employees were covered under a collective bargaining agreement with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (the “IBT”). On June 27, 2013, a new collective bargaining agreement, the ABF National Master Freight Agreement (the “ABF NMFA”), was ratified by a majority of ABF Freight’s IBT member employees who chose to vote. Following resolution of certain supplements to the ABF NMFA which were not approved at the time the collective bargaining agreement was ratified, the IBT implemented the ABF NMFA on November 3, 2013. The ABF NMFA will remain in effect through March 31, 2018. The primary changes to the labor agreement under the ABF NMFA include a 7% wage rate reduction upon the November 3, 2013 implementation date, followed by wage rate increases of 2% on July 1 in each of the next three years and a 2.5% increase on July 1, 2017; a one‑week reduction in annual compensated vacation effective for employee anniversary dates on or after April 1, 2013; the option to expand the use of purchased transportation; and increased flexibility in labor work rules. Not all of the contract changes were effective immediately upon implementation and, therefore, expected net cost reductions will be realized over time. The ABF NMFA and the related supplemental agreements provide for continued contributions to various multiemployer health, welfare, and pension plans maintained for the benefit of ABF Freight’s employees who are members of the IBT for which the rate increases were applied retroactively to August 1, 2013. The estimated net effect of the November 3 wage rate reduction and the August 1 benefit rate increase was an initial reduction of approximately 4% to the combined total contractual wage and benefit rate under the ABF NMFA. For subsequent years through the end of the agreement in 2018, the combined contractual wage and benefit contribution rate is estimated to increase approximately 2.5% to 3.0% on a compounded annual basis. On June 15, 2012, the Company acquired 100% of the common stock of Panther Expedited Services, Inc. (“Panther”), which is reported as the Premium Logistics & Expedited Freight Services segment (see Note N). See Note D for further discussion of the Panther acquisition. The Company acquired a 75% equity interest in Albert Companies, Inc. in the second quarter of 2009 and acquired the remaining 25% equity interest in the third quarter of 2011. Albert Companies, Inc. is included in the Household Goods Moving Services segment. The noncontrolling interest in net income of the subsidiary is presented on a separate line in the consolidated statements of operations and the consolidated statements of comprehensive income for 2011 through the date of the acquisition of the remaining 25% equity interest. Financial Statement Presentation Consolidation: The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its subsidiaries. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions are eliminated in consolidation. Segment Information: The Company uses the “management approach” for determining its reportable segment information. The management approach is based on the way management organizes the reportable segments within the Company for making operating decisions and assessing performance. Use of Estimates: The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes. Actual amounts may differ from those estimates.

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