It is also defined to be consistent with GDP as a measure of output. 4  large contributions to these plans that must be charged against operating profits. As these losses on pension fund assets are by convention amortized over time, firms' pension contributions will depress reported profits at least for the next couple of years (and, incidentally, raise reported compensation to workers).
I think one should note, however, that from a purely economic point of view, losses associated with pension fund commitments should be treated as bygones and thus in principle should not affect the willingness of firms to undertake new capital investments, except to the extent that they affect firms' ability to finance those investments.