Employer · plans filed under one EIN
Seattle Times Company
Seattle, WA · Information
Form 5500 information is as filed by the plan administrator with the Department of Labor and may be amended. Figures reflect the plan year shown, not current balances.
3 retirement plans with 100 or more participants file Form 5500 under Seattle Times Company's employer identification number (Seattle, Washington). Their latest filings total 3,780 participant records and $339M in net assets.
The largest is The Seattle Times Pension Plan, a defined benefit pension plan with 1,464 participants. A person can be counted in more than one plan, so the participant total is a count of records rather than of people.
Employer contributions across the plans were $4.2M and participant contributions $3.9M in the latest plan years; benefits paid were $46.4M. Schedule C compensation reported to service provider organisations totalled $734K.
Combined net assets moved from $217M in 2009 to $157M in 2025 (down 28%). Plan mergers and spin-offs show up here as steps in the series.
Plans
| Plan | Kind | Plan year | Participants | Net assets | Per participant | Employer / active | Sch. C compensation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Seattle Times Pension Plan | defined benefit pension plan | 2024 | 1,464 | $129M | $87,908 | $35,451 | $383K |
| Amended and Restated Blethen Maine Newspapers, Inc. Pension Plan | defined benefit pension plan | 2024 | 1,328 | $53.3M | $40,124 | $0 | $233K |
| 401(k) Savings Plan for Employees of Seattle Times Company and Subsidiaries | 401(k) plan | 2025 | 988 | $157M | $158,510 | $1,172 | $119K |
| US median, plan year 2024: DC plans $53,102 per participant, $2,175 employer contribution per active participant; DB plans $86,221 and $10,244. | |||||||
Trend by plan year
| Plan year | Plans | Participant records | Net assets | Employer contributions | Participant contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1 | 988 | $157M | $680K | $3.9M |
| 2024 | 3 | 3,817 | $337M | $4.1M | $3.7M |
| 2023 | 3 | 3,883 | $325M | $3.6M | $3.5M |
| 2022 | 3 | 4,001 | $301M | $7.5M | $3.5M |
| 2021 | 3 | 4,054 | $344M | $543K | $3.4M |
| 2020 | 3 | 4,187 | $379M | $613K | $3.3M |
| 2019 | 3 | 4,335 | $352M | $611K | $3.2M |
| 2018 | 3 | 4,449 | $335M | $3.0M | $3.4M |
| 2017 | 3 | 4,491 | $356M | $3.8M | $3.4M |
| 2016 | 3 | 4,760 | $342M | $4.4M | $3.6M |
| 2015 | 3 | 4,858 | $334M | $9.5M | $3.9M |
| 2014 | 3 | 5,163 | $330M | $7.1M | $3.8M |
| 2013 | 3 | 5,337 | $339M | $8.5M | $3.9M |
| 2012 | 3 | 5,402 | $304M | $7.7M | $4.0M |
| 2011 | 3 | 5,060 | $285M | $12.5M | $4.3M |
| 2010 | 3 | 5,156 | $268M | $1.4M | $1.9M |
| 2009 | 3 | 4,300 | $217M | $1.7M | $2.0M |
History of the plans listed above, in the years each filed the full Form 5500 with 100 or more participants. Plans that have since terminated are not included.
Service providers
| Organisation | Services reported | Plans | Compensation reported |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verus | Investment advisory (plan) | 3 | $134,613 |
| Willis Towers Watson | Actuarial | 2 | $133,796 |
| Principal Financial | Trustee (bank, trust company, or similar financial institution) | 2 | $99,560 |
| Pimco | Investment management | 2 | $96,501 |
| UBS Financial Services | Investment advisory (plan) | 2 | $68,300 |
| Seattle Times Company | Plan Administrator | 2 | $62,107 |
| Prudential Trust | Investment advisory (plan) | 2 | $46,394 |
| Strategic Advisors, Inc. | Investment advisory (plan) | 1 | $35,678 |
| US Bank | Trustee (bank, trust company, or similar financial institution) | 1 | $30,141 |
| Fidelity Investments Institutional | Participant loan processing | 1 | $27,366 |
Organisations paid $5,000 or more by any of these plans, from Schedule C. Individuals are not shown.
Questions and answers
How many retirement plans does Seattle Times Company have?
3 plans with 100 or more participants filed Form 5500 under its employer identification number for the latest plan years: The Seattle Times Pension Plan, Amended and Restated Blethen Maine Newspapers, Inc. Pension Plan and 401(k) Savings Plan for Employees of Seattle Times Company and Subsidiaries. Smaller plans and plans filed under a subsidiary's number are not grouped here.
How much does Seattle Times Company contribute to its plans?
$4,189,350 in employer contributions across these plans in their latest plan years, about $6,037 per active participant record. Form 5500 reports totals and not the match or accrual formula.
Who provides services to these plans?
Schedule C filings name Verus, Willis Towers Watson, Principal Financial and Pimco and others. Only organisations paid $5,000 or more by a plan are listed on Schedule C.
Where does this come from?
Form 5500 annual reports filed with the Department of Labor's EFAST2 system, from the EBSA research files, with filings received through 24 Aug 2026. Figures are as filed and may be amended.
Provenance
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration, Form 5500 research files, public domain, with filings received through 24 Aug 2026. Plans are grouped by the sponsor's employer identification number exactly as filed; a company that files under several EINs appears as several employers. See the methodology and corrections.