Problem $2$:

On January $1,2026,$ Thermoquest Incorporated amended its pension plan which caused an increase of $$500,000$ in its projected benefit obligation. The company has $200$ employees who are expected to receive benefits under the company's defined$-$benefit pension plan. The personnel department provided the following information regarding expected employee retirements:

Expected Retirements

$\backslash$table$[[$Number of Employees,On December $31],[20,2026],[45,2027],[95,2028],[{40}_{?},2029],[200,]]$

The company plans to use the years$-$of$-$service method in calculating the amortization of prior service costs as a component of pension expense. $(10$ points$)$

Instructions

Prepare a schedule that shows the total service hours and calculate the amortization amount for the year $2028.$