Business
Harte Hanks Finalizes Annuity Purchase to Effectively Terminate Qualified Pension Plan I
Nationwide to Provide Benefits to Plan I Pension Members as of August 2024 CHELMSFORD, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 25, 2024 / Harte Hanks, Inc. (NASDAQ:HHS), a
About this update from Harte Hanks, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"Nationwide to Provide Benefits to Plan I Pension Members as of August 2024 CHELMSFORD, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 25, 2024 / Harte Hanks, Inc. (NASDAQ:HHS), a leading global customer experience company focused on bringing companies closer to customers for over 100 years, announced today the successful divestment and termination of its obligations related to Qualified Pension Plan I (\"Plan I\"), effective as of August 2024.On June 18, 2024, Harte Hanks selected and signed formal commitment letters with Nationwide to provide pension benefits to its Plan I pension members, commencing as of August 2024. Nationwide's Pension Risk Transfer business leverages more than 60 years of annuity, defined benefit and risk management experience, as well as the company's outstanding financial strength, to serve a book with more than 450 contracts with a focus on personalized service and transition simplicity. Harte Hanks will continue to make payments to plan members through the end of July 2024.\"We pride ourselves on offering a seamless transition experience for plan participants, helping them feel confident that their pension benefit will continue under our management,\" said Paula Cole, vice president of Nationwide's Pension Risk Transfer business. \"We're excited to welcome these new plan members to Nationwide and look forward to providing extraordinary care to them beyond just this transition.\"In accordance with the commitment letters with Nationwide, Harte Hanks made a one-time $6.1 million contribution to Plan I on June 20, 2024 and transferred $71.9 million of Plan I assets to Nationwide on June 24, 2024, thereby absolving Harte Hanks of all payment obligations under Plan I as of August 1, 2024. This annuity purchase completes Harte Hanks prior decision to terminate this pension plan, effective as of June 30, 2023.\"This plan termination and annuity agreement is a positive step to increasing Harte Hanks cash flow, as our Plan I pension payments will end as of July 31st, 2024, and our related PBGC insurance premium payments will stop shortly thereafter. This termination will also further streamline our balance sheet, removing the ongoing obligation related to Plan I. More importantly, we're ensuring participants will be well taken care of by Nationwide, a company dedicated to extraordinary customer service,\" commented David Garrison, Chie...