2021 Universal Registration Document
5 2021 CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Notes to the consolidated financial statements
Post-employment benefits 5.3.1. Post-employment benefits mainly concern the Group’s obligations towards its employees to provide retirement bonuses in France (54.7% of the Group’s total obligations) and defined-benefit pension plans in the United Kingdom (23.4% of the Group’s total obligations) and Germany (20.6%). For marginal amounts, they also include end-of-contract bonuses in certain countries in Africa, as well as a defined-benefit plan in Belgium. At 31 December 2021 they totalled 278.1 million (380.1 million at 31 December 2020). In the United Kingdom , the Group has three post-employment defined-benefit plans, one of which is divided into three sections as a result of three prior plans being merged into one in 2020. One plan and two sections are closed to all new employees and the vesting of future benefits has ceased. The obligations under each plan and each section are asset-funded. For each plan, the benefits payable are primarily based on the plan member’s final salary or, in certain cases, an average of the member’s salary and any additional benefits. Each plan holds its assets in a trust fund for employees and is supervised by the regulating body defined in UK pension law. The plan trustees are corporate trustees whose directors include representatives of the plan members, representatives of the Company and independent members. External consultants are hired by the trustees to manage the plans on a day-to-day basis and deal with legal, investment policy and actuarial matters. Under UK law, the plans must be assessed every three years. This assessment is used as a basis to determine the contributions payable by the employer to the funds. The most recent assessment was completed in 2020. The creation of a single plan through the merger of three prior plans simplified the administration of these post-employment benefit plans. However, this merger made it necessary to carry out a new assessment within 12 months, which was scheduled for 31 December 2020. This assessment made it possible to establish an agreement on the level of contributions to be paid. Discussions with trustees are still ongoing. They should be finalised by 31 March 2022. The risks associated with these plans relate to: asset management; p inflation, to which pension benefits are indexed, although this p risk is limited by the use of inflation-indexed financial instruments; interest rates insofar as the future cash outflows are discounted, p although this risk is limited by the use of interest rate hedging instruments; changes in demographic assumptions such as mortality. p These plans distinguish between active members who are still vesting benefits, members who are still working but whose benefits
are frozen, and retired members. These three member categories represent 4.4%, 51.2% and 44.4%, respectively, of total obligations. Projected benefit outflows by the funds, which had a total of 1,969.8 million in assets at 31 December 2021, are as follows, in millions of pounds sterling, over the next ten years:
less than two years: £94.4 million; p two to five years: £155.8 million; p five to ten years: £294.5 million. p
These outflows correspond to benefits provided and estimates for transfers of obligations (and the related assets), at the request of recipients, to external asset managers. Assets covering these obligations came to 1,904.6 million at 31 December 2021. These plans include the payment of contributions to fund the deficit existing in the funds (contributions less mandatory expenses and deductions) and to fund the current service cost for the financial year. In 2021, over 12 months, contributions paid totalled 27.4 million, including 23.7 million to fund the deficit (29.7 million including other related disbursements). Following the merging of the plans, the amount of contributions to be paid in 2022 to fund the deficit is still being determined with the corporate trustees and will need to be finalised before end-March 2022. In France , the defined-benefit plan concerns the payment of retirement bonuses. The Group recognises provisions for its employee benefit obligations, principally in accordance with the terms of voluntary and compulsory retirement under the Syntec collective bargaining agreement. The resulting liability fluctuates according to demographic assumptions such as mortality rates (public statistics) and the discount rate (Bloomberg eurozone index). This plan is exposed to interest rate risk, inflation risk and the risk of changes in demographic assumptions. In Germany , there are six plans, two of which are material (49.0 million). Since these plans are not funded, they are covered by a provision. The purpose of the main plan is to pay a minimum pension equal to 14.1% of the salary paid up to the social security ceiling and 35.2% beyond that ceiling. This plan only involves employees who entered into service prior to 1 January 1986, and pension entitlements have been frozen since 30 September 1996. This plan is exposed to interest rate risk, inflation risk and the risk of changes in demographic assumptions. There are also plans in Poland, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Tunisia and Belgium. The plan in Belgium is funded and serves to pay an annuity to plan members on retirement. The other plans cover end-of-contract bonuses payable. These plans are grouped together under “Other”, with the plan in Belgium being the main contributor to this item.
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SOPRA STERIA UNIVERSAL REGISTRATION DOCUMENT 2021
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