Pension And Other Post-Retirement Benefits

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

Pension And Other Post-Retirement Benefits

Tredegar sponsors a noncontributory defined benefit (pension) plan covering certain current and former U.S. employees. The plan for salaried and hourly employees currently in effect is based on a formula using the participant’s years of service and compensation or using the participant’s years of service and a dollar amount. The plan is closed to new participants and pay for active plan participants for benefit calculations was frozen as of December 31, 2007. As of January 31, 2018, the plan no longer accrued benefits associated with crediting employees for service, thereby freezing all future benefits under the plan.

The components of net periodic benefit cost for the pension and other postretirement benefit programs reflected in the consolidated statements of income are shown below:


	Pension Benefits						Other Post-Retirement Benefits
	Three Months Ended March 31,						Three Months Ended March 31,
(In thousands)	2020		2019		2020		2019
Service cost	$	—	$	—	$	9	$	8
Interest cost	2,535		3,067		60		73
Expected return on plan assets	(2,804)		(3,404)		—		—
Amortization of prior service costs, (gains) losses and net transition asset	3,814		2,729		(47)		(58)
Net periodic benefit cost	$	3,545	$	2,392	$	22	$	23

Pension and other postretirement liabilities were $106.0 million and $108.1 million at March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively ($0.7 million included in “Accrued expenses” at March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, with the remainder included in “Pension and other postretirement benefit obligations, net” in the consolidated balance sheets). The Company’s required contributions are expected to be $12.3 million in 2020. Contributions to the pension plan during the first three months of 2020 were $2.0 million. Tredegar funds its other postretirement benefits (life insurance and health benefits) on a claims-made basis; for 2020, the Company anticipates the amount will be consistent with amounts paid for the year ended December 31, 2019, or $0.3 million.