Retirement Plans

3 Months Ended

Jul. 31, 2017

12. Retirement Plans

The components of net pension expense (income) for the Company's global defined benefit plans were as follows (in thousands):

	For the Three Months Ended July 31,
	2017	2016
Service cost	$230	$252
Interest cost	6,252	7,198
Expected return on plan assets	(9,657)	(9,375)
Net amortization of prior service cost	(25)	(25)
Recognized net actuarial loss	1,501	1,362
Net pension income	$(1,699)	$(588)

Employer defined benefit pension plan contributions were $2.8 million and $7.6 million for the three months ended July 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. Contributions for employer defined contribution plans were approximately $4.9 million for both the three months ended July 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively.