Advanced Energy Amended and Restated Deferred Compensation Plan Amended and Restated Effective as of August 1, 2023
Exhibit 10.1
AE DEFERRED COMPENSATION PLAN
Amended and Restated Effective as of August 1, 2023
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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AE DEFERRED COMPENSATION PLAN
Advanced Energy Industries, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), established the AE Deferred Compensation Plan (the “Plan”), originally effective December 1, 2021 (the “Effective Date”), and hereby amends and restates the Plan in its entirety effective as of August 1, 2023.
PURPOSE AND DEFINITIONS
Annual Bonus: | A Participant’s Annual Bonus or other incentive compensation provided for under a performance-based bonus or incentive arrangement, excluding Commission. As of the Effective Date, the Short-Term Incentive (STI) Plan has been approved for inclusion in this Plan as an Annual Bonus. An Annual Bonus may be determined by the Committee to constitute “performance-based compensation” under Treas. Reg. §1.409A-1(e)) earned with respect to one calendar year, provided that the performance period for such bonus amount is at least twelve (12) months long. |
Base Salary: | A Participant’s annual base salary, excluding incentive and discretionary bonuses, commissions, reimbursements and other non-regular remuneration, received from the Company, prior to reduction for any salary deferrals under benefit plans sponsored by the Company, including but not limited to, plans established under Code Section 125 or Code Section 401(k). |
Beneficiary: | The person, persons or entity designated as such pursuant to Section 8.1. |
Board: | The Board of Directors of the Company. |
Code: | The Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, as interpreted by Treasury regulations and applicable authorities promulgated thereunder. |
Commission: | “Sales commission compensation” as defined in Treas. Reg. §1.409A-2(a)(12). |
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Committee: | The person or persons appointed by the Board to administer the Plan in accordance with Article IX, provided, that if the Board does not appoint a Committee, the Board shall act as the Committee. |
Company 401(k)
Plan: | Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan, as may be amended from time to time. |
Compensation: | All amounts eligible for deferral for a particular Plan Year under Section 3.1. |
Deferral Account: | The bookkeeping account or accounts established under this Plan pursuant to ARTICLE IV and maintained by the Company in the names of the respective Participants, to which all amounts deferred under the Plan and earnings on such amounts shall be credited, and from which all amounts distributed under the Plan shall be debited. |
Disability or
Disabled: | Consistent with the requirements of Code Section 409A, that the Participant is (a) unable to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 months, or (b) by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 months, receiving income replacement benefits for a period of not less than three months under an accident and health plan covering employees of the Company. For purposes of this Plan, a Participant shall be deemed Disabled if determined to be totally disabled by the Social Security Administration. A Participant shall also be deemed Disabled if determined to be disabled in accordance with the applicable disability insurance program of the Company, provided that the definition of “disability” applied under such disability insurance program complies with the requirements of this definition. |
Disability Claim: | A claim related to any distribution or rights to which a Participant or other claimant may be entitled in connection with the Participant’s Disability, as described in Section 9.2(b)(3). |
Eligible Executive: | Each individual who, according to the books and records of the Company meets all of the following criteria, as determined by the Committee: (i) is a member of a select group of highly compensated or management employees, (ii) holds a L1 or above leadership position with the Company; (iii) maintains full-time employment status, and (iv) is designated as eligible by the Board or Committee. |
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Employer:(a)Except as otherwise provided in part (b) of this definition, the Company and/or any of its subsidiaries (now in existence or hereafter formed or acquired) that have been selected by the Committee to participate in the Plan and have adopted the Plan as a participating Employer.
b) | For the purpose of determining whether a Participant has experienced a Separation from Service, the term “Employer” shall mean: |
(i) | the entity for which the Participant performs services and with respect to which the legally binding right to compensation deferred under this Plan arises; and |
(ii) | all other entities with which the entity described above would be aggregated and treated as a single employer under Code Section 414(b) (controlled group of corporations) and Code Section 414(c) (a group of trades or businesses, whether or not incorporated, under common control), as applicable. In order to identify the group of entities described in the preceding sentence, the Committee shall use an ownership threshold of at least 50% as a substitute for the 80% minimum ownership threshold that appears in, and otherwise must be used when applying, the applicable provisions of (A) Code Section 1563 for determining a controlled group of corporations under Code Section 414(b), and (B) Treas. Reg. §1.414(c)-2 for determining the trades or businesses that are under common control under Code Section 414(c). |
ERISA: | The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, including Department of Labor and Treasury regulations and applicable authorities promulgated thereunder. |
Fund or Funds: | One or more of the investments selected by the Committee pursuant to Section 5.2 of the Plan. |
Fund Subaccounts: | Subaccounts of a Participant’s Deferral Account, each of which corresponds to a Fund. |
Interest Rate: | For each Fund, the rate of return derived from the net gain or loss on the assets of such Fund, as determined by the Committee. |
Participant: | Any Eligible Executive who becomes a Participant in this Plan in accordance with ARTICLE II. |
Participant Election: | The forms or procedures by which a Participant makes elections with respect to (a) voluntary deferrals of his/her Compensation, (b) the Funds, |
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which shall act as the basis for crediting of interest on Deferral Account balances, and (c) the form and timing of distributions from Deferral Accounts. Participant Elections may take the form of an electronic communication followed by appropriate confirmation according to specifications established by the Committee.
Payment Date: | The date by which a total distribution of the distributable amount shall be made or the date by which installment payments of the distributable amount shall commence, which shall be the first day of the month following the month in which the event triggering the distribution occurs; or, in the case of a Scheduled In-Service Distribution, the first day of the month following the date indicated by the Participant for the elected Scheduled In-Service Distribution. Notwithstanding the foregoing: |
(a) | the Payment Date shall not be before the earliest date or after the latest date on which benefits may be distributed under Code Section 409A without violation of the provisions thereof, as reasonably determined by the Committee; |
(b) | the Payment Date for a Scheduled In-Service Distribution may not be earlier than the date specified by the Committee pursuant to Section 6.5(a); and |
(c) | to the extent required under Code Section 409A, any amount that otherwise would be payable to a Participant who is a “specified employee” of the Company, as determined by the Company in accordance with Code Section 409A, during the six-month period following such Participant’s Separation from Service, shall be suspended until the lapse of such six-month period (or, if earlier, the date of death of the Participant). The amount that otherwise would be payable to such Participant during such period of suspension shall be paid in a single payment within 30 days following the end of such six-month period (or, if such day is not a business day, on the next succeeding business day) or within 30 days following the death of the Participant during such six-month period, provided that the death of the Participant during such six-month period shall not cause the acceleration of any amount that otherwise would be payable on any date during such six-month period following the date of the Participant’s death. |
Payment Delay
Period: | Has the meaning described in Section 6.2(b) |
Plan Year | The calendar year. |
Performance Year: | To the extent that the Annual Bonus constitutes “performance-based compensation” under Treas. Reg. §1.409A-1(e), the calendar year used to |
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measure the amount of Annual Bonus or Special Bonus (if applicable and as permitted under the Plan) to which a Participant may become entitled under a performance-based bonus or incentive arrangement.
Separation from
Service: | A Separation from Services provided by a Participant to his or her Employer, whether voluntarily or involuntarily, other than by reason of death or Disability, as determined by the Committee in accordance with Treas. Reg. §1.409A-1(h). For a Participant who provides services to an Employer as an employee, a Separation from Service shall occur when such Participant has experienced a termination of employment with the Employer. A Participant shall be considered to have experienced a termination of employment when the facts and circumstances indicate that the Participant and his or her Employer reasonably anticipate that either (i) no further services will be performed for the Employer after a certain date, or (ii) that the level of bona fide services the Participant will perform for the Employer after such date (whether as an employee or as an independent contractor) will permanently decrease to no more than 20% of the average level of bona fide services performed by such Participant (whether as an employee or an independent contractor) over the immediately preceding 36-month period (or the full period of services to the Employer if the Participant has been providing services to the Employer less than 36 months). |
If a Participant is on military leave, sick leave, or other bona fide leave of absence, the employment relationship between the Participant and the Employer shall be treated as continuing intact, provided that the period of such leave does not exceed six (6) months, or if longer, so long as the Participant retains a right to reemployment with the Employer under an applicable statute or by contract. If the period of a military leave, sick leave, or other bona fide leave of absence exceeds six (6) months and the Participant does not retain a right to reemployment under an applicable statute or by contract, the employment relationship shall be considered to be terminated for purposes of this Plan as of the first day immediately following the end of such 6-month period. In applying the provisions of this paragraph, a leave of absence shall be considered a bona fide leave of absence only if there is a reasonable expectation that the Participant will return to perform services for the Employer.
Scheduled In-Service
Distribution: | A scheduled in-service distribution date elected by the Participant for distribution of amounts from a specified Deferral Account, including earnings thereon, which distribution shall be made provided that the Participant has not experienced a Separation from Service, as provided under Section 6.5. |
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Share Award: | The number of bookkeeping units of cash-settled or share-settled incentive awards expressed in the form of common stock of the Company, if any, that the Company awards to an Eligible Executive, including without limitation cash-settled or share-settled restricted stock units and performance stock units, and any dividend equivalent rights thereunder. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no award, unit or right shall constitute a Share Award for purposes of this Plan unless it has been granted pursuant to the Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. 2017 Omnibus Incentive Plan (approved on May 4, 2017 and as amended from time to time), or any successor plan thereto that has been duly approved by the Company’s stockholders. |
Special Bonus: | A Participant’s bonus or other incentive compensation provided for as a one-time cash bonus or award, including, without limitation, a retention bonus or management-by-objectives bonus, specifically approved for inclusion in this Plan by the Committee, but not including an Annual Bonus, Commission, signing bonus, recognition spot bonus, or Share Award. Notwithstanding anything in this Plan to the contrary, effective as of August 1, 2023, Special Bonuses for services performed on or after January 1, 2024 shall not be eligible for deferral under this Plan. |
Unforeseeable
Emergency: | A severe financial hardship to the Participant resulting from an illness or accident of the Participant, the Participant’s spouse, or a dependent (as defined in Code Section 152, without regard to Code Sections 152(b)(1), (b)(2), and (d)(1)(B)) of the Participant, loss of the Participant’s property due to casualty, or other similar extraordinary and unforeseeable circumstances arising as a result of events beyond the control of the Participant, but shall in all events correspond to the meaning of the term “unforeseeable emergency” under Treas. Reg. §1.409A-3(i)(3). No Unforeseeable Emergency shall be deemed to exist to the extent that the financial hardship is or may be relieved (a) through reimbursement or compensation by insurance or otherwise, (b) by borrowing from commercial sources on reasonable commercial terms to the extent that this borrowing would not itself cause a severe financial hardship, (c) by cessation of deferrals under the Plan, or (d) by liquidation of the Participant’s other assets to the extent that this liquidation would not itself cause severe financial hardship. The Committee shall determine whether the circumstances of the Participant constitute an Unforeseeable Emergency. |
PARTICIPATION
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time such other enrollment requirements as it determines, in its sole discretion, are necessary. If an Eligible Executive fails to meet all requirements established by the Committee within the period required, that Eligible Executive shall not be eligible to participate in the Plan during such Plan Year.
DEFERRAL ELECTIONS
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in either case, provided that the Participant submits Participant Election(s) on or before the deadline established by the Committee, which in no event shall be later than 30 days after the Participant first becomes eligible to participate in the Plan and, with respect to Participant Election(s) to defer Annual Bonus or Special Bonus (if applicable and permitted under the Plan) that constitute “performance-based compensation” under Treas. Reg. §1.409A-1(e)), if so determined by the Committee, in no event shall be later than such time that the amount of such Annual Bonus or Special Bonus is readily ascertainable. Notwithstanding the foregoing, effective as of August 1, 2023, no deferral elections shall be permitted with respect to any Special Bonus for services performed on or after January 1, 2024.
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COMPANY CONTRIBUTIONS
DEFERRAL ACCOUNTS
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the frequency with which or time at which one or more of the Funds elected in accordance with this Section may be added or deleted by such Participant; furthermore, the Committee, in its sole discretion, may impose limitations on the frequency with which or time at which the Participant may change the portion of his or her Deferral Account balance allocated to each previously or newly elected Fund.
DISTRIBUTIONS
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Participants may make a subsequent election only while employed by the Company, and may only make a single subsequent election with respect to any deferral election. A Beneficiary of a deceased Participant is not permitted to make a subsequent election under this Section. Election changes made pursuant to this Section shall be made in accordance with rules established by the Committee and shall comply with all requirements of Code Section 409A and applicable authorities.
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BENEFICIARY DESIGNATIONS AND OTHER PAYEES
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LEAVE OF ABSENCE
ADMINISTRATION
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This subsection (ii) is not available if the violation is a part of a pattern or practice of violations by the Plan. The claimant may request a written explanation of the violation from the Committee and the Committee must provide such explanation within 10 days, including a specific description of its basis, if any, for asserting that the violation should not cause the procedures to be deemed exhausted. If a court rejects the claimant’s request for immediate review on the basis that the Plan met the standards for the exception under subsection (ii), the Disability Claim shall be considered as refiled on appeal upon the Committee’s receipt of the decision of the court, and the Committee must provide the claimant with notice of the resubmission within a reasonable period of time after the receipt of the court’s decision.
MISCELLANEOUS
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Participants shall be distributed, subject to and in accordance with any rules established by the Company deemed necessary to comply with Code Section 409A.
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under Code Section 409A. If any portion of a Participant’s Account(s) under this Plan is required to be included in income by the Participant prior to receipt due to a failure of this Plan to comply with the requirements of Code Section 409A, the Committee may determine that such Participant shall receive a distribution from the Plan in an amount equal to the lesser of (i) the portion of his or her Account required to be included in income as a result of the failure of the Plan to comply with the requirements of Code Section 409A, or (ii) the unpaid vested Account balance.
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compensated employees” within the meaning of Sections 201, 301 and 401 of ERISA and therefore to be exempt from Parts 2, 3 and 4 of Title I of ERISA. To the extent any provision of, or legal issue relating to, this Plan is not fully preempted by federal law, such issue or provision shall be governed by the laws of the State of Delaware.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned duly authorized officer of the Company has approved the adoption of this Plan on behalf of the Company.
ADVANCED ENERGY INDUSTRIES, INC.
By: /s/ Rory O’Byrne
Print Name: Rory O’Byrne
Title: SVP Human Resources
Date: August 1, 2023
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