RETIREMENT PLANS AND POSTRETIREMENT COSTS

We have a qualified, noncontributory defined benefit pension plan (“Qualified Pension Plan”) covering substantially all U.S. associates employed by us prior to January 1, 2010. Benefits under the Qualified Pension Plan are based on credited years of service and final average compensation. Our policy is to fund the Qualified Pension Plan with at least the minimum actuarially computed annual contribution required under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). Plan assets consist primarily of listed equity and fixed income securities. Effective December 31, 2009, the Board of Directors amended the Qualified Pension Plan to freeze benefit accruals and future eligibility. The Board of Directors has subsequently approved to proceed with the termination of the Qualified Pension Plan. We submitted a request to and received a response from the IRS for a determination letter that the Qualified Pension Plan is qualified for termination. We intend to distribute substantially all of the Qualified Pension Plan assets prior to the end of December 2018. Additionally, in connection with preparing for the termination of the Qualified Pension Plan, we have amended the plan to provide that participants are 100 percent vested in their accrued benefits as of the effective date of the plan termination, to adopt a new standard for disability benefits that will apply when the plan’s assets are distributed due to the termination, to add a lump sum distribution for employees and terminated vested participants who are not in payment status when Qualified Pension Plan assets are distributed due to the termination and to make certain other conforming amendments to the Qualified Pension Plan to comply with applicable laws that may be required by the IRS or may be deemed necessary or advisable to improve the administration of the Qualified Pension Plan or facilitate its termination and liquidation. We will contribute to the Trust Fund for the Qualified Pension Plan as necessary to ensure there are sufficient assets to provide all Qualified Pension Plan benefits as required by the PBGC. The financial impact of the Qualified Pension Plan termination will be recognized as a settlement of the Qualified Pension Plan liabilities. The settlement date and related financial impact may occur during fiscal year 2019 but have not yet been determined and is still subject to final Board approval.

We have historically had in place a noncontributory supplemental executive retirement plan (“SERP”), which prior to January 1, 2014 was a nonqualified defined benefit plan that essentially mirrored the Qualified Pension Plan, but provided benefits in excess of certain limits placed on our Qualified Pension Plan by the Internal Revenue Code. As noted above, we froze our Qualified Pension Plan effective as of December 31, 2009 and the SERP provided benefits to participants as if the Qualified Pension Plan had not been frozen. Because the Qualified Pension Plan was frozen and because new employees were not eligible to participate in the Qualified Pension Plan, our Board of Directors adopted amendments to the SERP on October 8, 2013 that were effective as of December 31, 2013 to simplify the SERP calculation. The SERP is funded through a Rabbi Trust with BMO Harris Bank N.A. Under the amended SERP, participants received an accrued lump-sum benefit as of December 31, 2013 which was credited to each participant’s account. Subsequent to December 31, 2013, each eligible participant receives a supplemental retirement benefit equal to the foregoing lump-sum benefit, plus an annual benefit accrual equal to 8 percent of the participant’s base salary and cash bonus, plus annual credited interest on the participant’s account balance. All then current participants as of December 31, 2013 are fully vested in their account balances with any new individuals participating in the SERP effective on or after January 1, 2014 being subject to a five year vesting period. The SERP, which is considered a defined benefit plan under applicable rules and regulations of the Internal Revenue Code, will continue to be funded through use of a Rabbi Trust to hold investment assets to be used in part to fund any future required lump sum benefit payments to participants. The Rabbi Trust assets had a value of $2.8 million at July 1, 2018 and $2.6 million at July 2, 2017, and are included in Other Long-Term Assets in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheets. The projected benefit obligation under the amended SERP was $1.9 million at July 1, 2018 and $1.8 million at July 2, 2017. The SERP liabilities are included in the pension tables below. However, the Rabbi Trust assets are excluded from the tables as they do not qualify as plan assets.

We also sponsor a postretirement health care plan for all U.S. associates hired prior to June 1, 2001. The expected cost of retiree health care benefits is recognized during the years the associates who are covered under the plan render service. Effective January 1, 2010, an amendment to the postretirement health care plan limited the benefit for future eligible retirees to $4,000 per plan year and the benefit is further subject to a maximum five year coverage period based on the associate’s retirement date and age. The postretirement health care plan is unfunded.

Amounts included in accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of tax, at July 1, 2018, which have not yet been recognized in net periodic benefit cost were as follows (thousands of dollars):

	Pension and SERP		Postretirement
Prior service credit	$	—	$	(294	)
Net actuarial loss		16,515		1,927
	$	16,515	$	1,633

Prior service cost (credit) and unrecognized net actuarial losses included in accumulated other comprehensive loss at July 1, 2018 which are expected to be recognized in net periodic benefit cost (credit) in fiscal 2019, net of tax, for the pension, SERP and postretirement plans are as follows (thousands of dollars):

	Pension and SERP		Postretirement
Prior service credit	$	—	$	(336	)
Net actuarial loss		1,272		329
	$	1,272	$	(7	)

The following tables summarize the pension, SERP and postretirement plans’ income and expense, funded status and actuarial assumptions for the years indicated (thousands of dollars). We use a June 30 measurement date for our pension and postretirement plans.

	Pension and SERP Benefits									Postretirement Benefits
	Years Ended									Years Ended
	July 1, 2018			July 2, 2017			July 3, 2016			July 1, 2018			July 2, 2017			July 3, 2016
COMPONENTS OF NET PERIODIC BENEFIT COST (CREDIT):
Service cost	$	66		$	54		$	50		$	13		$	13		$	12
Interest cost		3,857			3,926			4,387			45			55			87
Expected return on plan assets		(6,111	)		(5,854	)		(5,509	)		—			—			—
Amortization of prior service cost (credit)		12			11			11			(764	)		(764	)		(764	)
Amortization of unrecognized net loss		2,035			3,228			2,443			479			538			616
Net periodic benefit cost (credit)	$	(141	)	$	1,365		$	1,382		$	(227	)	$	(158	)	$	(49	)

	Pension and SERP Benefits						Postretirement Benefits
	2018			2017			2018			2017
WEIGHTED-AVERAGE ASSUMPTIONS:
Benefit Obligations:
Discount rate		4.30	%		3.91	%		4.30	%		3.91	%
Rate of compensation increases - SERP		3.0	%		3.0	%	n/a			n/a
Net Periodic Benefit Cost:
Discount rate		3.91	%		3.79	%		3.91	%		3.79	%
Expected return on plan assets		5.45	%		5.45	%	n/a			n/a
Rate of compensation increases - SERP		3.0	%		3.0	%	n/a			n/a
CHANGE IN PROJECTED BENEFIT OBLIGATION:
Benefit obligation at beginning of year	$	101,266		$	106,152		$	1,268		$	1,602
Service cost		66			54			13			13
Interest cost		3,857			3,926			45			55
Actuarial gain		(1,392	)		(4,342	)		(8	)		(80	)
Benefits paid		(4,962	)		(4,524	)		(277	)		(322	)
Benefit obligation at end of year	$	98,835		$	101,266		$	1,041		$	1,268
CHANGE IN PLAN ASSETS:
Fair value of plan assets at beginning of year	$	112,524		$	104,460		$	—		$	—
Actual return on plan assets		3,890			7,574			—			—
Employer contribution		14			5,014			277			322
Benefits paid		(4,962	)		(4,524	)		(277	)		(322	)
Fair value of plan assets at end of year	$	111,466		$	112,524		$	—		$	—
Funded status – prepaid (accrued) benefit obligations	$	12,631		$	11,258		$	(1,041	)	$	(1,268	)
AMOUNTS RECOGNIZED IN CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS:
Other long-term assets	$	14,547		$	13,082		$	—		$	—
Accrued payroll and benefits (current liabilities)		(363	)		(332	)		(215	)		(265	)
Accrued benefit obligations (long-term liabilities)		(1,553	)		(1,492	)		(826	)		(1,003	)
Net amount recognized	$	12,631		$	11,258		$	(1,041	)	$	(1,268	)
CHANGES IN PLAN ASSETS AND BENEFIT OBLIGATIONS RECOGNIZED IN OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME:
Net periodic benefit (credit) cost	$	(141	)	$	1,365		$	(227	)	$	(158	)
Net actuarial loss (gain)		828			(6,063	)		(8	)		(80	)
Amortization of prior service (cost) credits		(12	)		(11	)		764			764
Amortization of unrecognized net loss		(2,035	)		(3,228	)		(479	)		(538	)
Total recognized in other comprehensive (income) loss, before tax		(1,219	)		(9,302	)		277			146
Total recognized in net periodic benefit cost and other comprehensive (income) loss, before tax	$	(1,360	)	$	(7,937	)	$	50		$	(12	)

The pension benefits have a separately determined accumulated benefit obligation, which is the actuarial present value of benefits based on service rendered and current and past compensation levels. This differs from the projected benefit obligation in that it includes no assumptions about future compensation levels. The following table summarizes the accumulated benefit obligations and projected benefit obligations for the pension and SERP (thousands of dollars):

	Pension				SERP
	July 1, 2018		July 2, 2017		July 1, 2018		July 2, 2017
Accumulated benefit obligation	$	96,919	$	99,442	$	1,749	$	1,591
Projected benefit obligation	$	96,919	$	99,442	$	1,916	$	1,824

For measurement purposes as it pertains to the estimated obligation associated with retirees prior to January 1, 2010, a 7.4 percent annual rate increase in the per capita cost of covered health care benefits was assumed for fiscal 2019; the rate was assumed to decrease gradually to 4.5 percent by the year 2025 and remain at that level thereafter.

The health care cost trend assumption has a minimal effect on our postretirement benefit amounts reported. A 1% change in the health care cost trend rates would have the following effects (thousands of dollars):

1% Increase

1% Decrease

Effect on total of service and interest cost components

in fiscal 2018

—

Effect on postretirement benefit obligation as of

July 1, 2018

)

We employ a total return investment approach whereby a mix of equities and fixed income investments are used to maximize the long-term return of plan assets for a prudent level of risk. Risk tolerance is established through careful consideration of short and long-term plan liabilities, plan funded status and corporate financial condition. The investment portfolio primarily contains a diversified blend of equity and fixed income investments. Furthermore, equity investments are diversified across U.S. and non-U.S. stocks, as well as growth and value style managers, and small, mid and large market capitalizations. The investment portfolio does not include any real estate holdings. The investment policy of the plan prohibits investment in STRATTEC stock. Investment risk is measured and monitored on an ongoing basis through periodic investment portfolio reviews, annual liability measurements and periodic asset/liability studies. The pension plan weighted-average asset allocations by asset category were as follows for 2018 and 2017:

	Target Allocation			July 1, 2018			July 2, 2017
Equity investments	0-50%				13	%		38	%
Fixed-income investments / cash	50-100				87			62
Total		100	%		100	%		100	%

The following is a summary, by asset category, of the fair value of pension plan assets at the June 30, 2018 and June 30, 2017 measurement dates (thousands of dollars):

	June 30, 2018								June 30, 2017
Asset Category	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total		Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Cash and cash equivalents	$	—	$	7,617	$	—	$	7,617	$	—	$	7,233	$	—	$	7,233
Equity securities/funds:
Small cap		—		—		—		—		1,008		—		—		1,008
Mid cap		4,953		—		—		4,953		12,414		—		—		12,414
Large cap		4,945		—		—		4,945		19,961		—		—		19,961
International		4,443		—		—		4,443		8,941		—		—		8,941
Fixed income: Bond funds/bonds		—		89,508		—		89,508		5,718		57,249		—		62,967
Total	$	14,341	$	97,125	$	—	$	111,466	$	48,042	$	64,482	$	—	$	112,524

There were no transfers in or out of Level 3 investments during the measurement year ended June 30, 2018.

The expected long-term rate of return on U.S. pension plan assets used to calculate net periodic benefit cost was 4.05 percent for 2019 and 5.45 percent for 2018. In connection with the planned termination of the Qualified Pension Plan, we have shifted the target asset allocation to 0 - 50 percent public equity and 50 - 100 percent fixed income/cash in 2018 from the previous years’ target allocation of 35 percent public equity and 65 percent fixed income/cash. The 4.05 percent is approximated by applying returns of 10 percent on public equity and 3 percent on fixed income/cash to the target allocation. The actual historical returns are also relevant. Annualized returns for periods ended June 30, 2018 were 2.97 percent for 5 years, 3.98 percent for 10 years, 4.28 percent for 15 years, 4.80 percent for 20 years, 5.21 percent for 25 years and 5.97 percent for 30 years.

We do not expect to make contributions to our qualified pension plan in fiscal 2019. We expect to contribute $364,000 to our SERP and $215,000 to our postretirement health care plan in fiscal 2019. The following benefit payments, which reflect expected future service, as appropriate, are expected to be paid during the fiscal years noted below (thousands of dollars):

	Pension and SERP Benefits		Postretirement Benefits
2019	$	5,719	$	215
2020	$	5,760	$	163
2021	$	6,360	$	146
2022	$	6,411	$	135
2023	$	6,136	$	108
2024-2028	$	31,401	$	254

All U.S. associates may participate in our 401(k) Plan. We contribute 100 percent up to the first 5 percent of eligible compensation that a participant contributes to the plan. Our contributions to the 401(k) Plan were as follows (thousands of dollars):

	Years Ended
	July 1, 2018		July 2, 2017		July 3, 2016
Company contributions	$	1,793	$	1,805	$	1,783