Postretirement Benefits Other Than Pensions

The Company provides certain retiree health care and life insurance benefits covering certain U.S. salaried and hourly employees and employees in Canada. Employees are generally eligible for benefits upon retirement and completion of a specified number of years of creditable service. The Company’s policy is to fund the cost of these postretirement benefits as these benefits become payable.

Information related to the Company’s postretirement benefit plans was as follows:



	Year Ended December 31,
	2017						2016
	U.S.			Non-U.S.			U.S.			Non-U.S.
Change in benefit obligation:
Benefit obligations at beginning of year	$	33,877		$	18,350		$	33,955		$	16,455
Service cost	314			423			361			372
Interest cost	1,297			693			1,383			678
Actuarial loss	1,021			4,002			112			926
Benefits paid	(1,690		)	(651		)	(1,939		)	(601		)
Other	5			—			5			—
Foreign currency exchange rate effect	—			1,425			—			520
Benefit obligation at end of year	$	34,824		$	24,242		$	33,877		$	18,350

Funded status of the plan	$	(34,824	)	$	(24,242	)	$	(33,877	)	$	(18,350	)

Net amount recognized as of December 31	$	(34,824	)	$	(24,242	)	$	(33,877	)	$	(18,350	)



	December 31, 2017						December 31, 2016
	U.S.			Non-U.S.			U.S.			Non-U.S.
Amounts recognized in the consolidated balance sheet:
Accrued liabilities	$	(2,098	)	$	(634	)	$	(2,047	)	$	(548	)
Postretirement benefits other than pension (long term)	(32,726		)	(23,608		)	(31,830		)	(17,803		)

Pre-tax amounts included in accumulated other comprehensive loss that have not yet been recognized in net periodic benefit (income) cost as of December 31, 2017 and 2016 were as follows:



	December 31, 2017					December 31, 2016
	U.S.		Non-U.S.			U.S.		Non-U.S.
Prior service credits	$	676	$	714		$	970	$	940
Actuarial gains (losses)	$	13,930	$	(9,127	)	$	16,572	$	(4,926	)

Pre-tax amounts included in accumulated other comprehensive loss that are expected to be recognized in net periodic benefit cost during the year ended December 31, 2018 are as follows:



	U.S.		Non-U.S.
Prior service credits	$	294	$	292
Actuarial gains (losses)	$	1,378	$	(609	)

The components of net periodic benefit (income) costs for the Company’s other postretirement benefit plans were as follows:



	Year Ended December 31,
	2017						2016						2015
	U.S.			Non-U.S.			U.S.			Non-U.S.			U.S.			Non-U.S.
Service cost	$	314		$	423		$	361		$	372		$	434		$	380
Interest cost	1,297			693			1,383			678			1,411			678
Amortization of prior service credit and recognized actuarial gain	(1,915		)	(15		)	(2,026		)	(62		)	(1,584		)	(20		)
Other	5			—			5			—			25			—
Net periodic benefit (income) cost	$	(299	)	$	1,101		$	(277	)	$	988		$	286		$	1,038

Plan Assumptions

Weighted average assumptions used to determine benefit obligations as of December 31, 2017 and 2016 were as follows:



	2017				2016
	U.S.		Non-U.S.		U.S.		Non-U.S.
Discount rate	3.55	%	3.40	%	3.95	%	3.70	%

Weighted average assumptions used to determine net periodic benefit costs for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 were as follows:



	2017				2016				2015
	U.S.		Non-U.S.		U.S.		Non-U.S.		U.S.		Non-U.S.
Discount rate	3.95	%	3.70	%	4.20	%	4.00	%	3.85	%	3.90	%

These assumed health care cost trend rates used to measure the postretirement benefit obligation as of December 31, 2017 were as follows:



	U.S.		Non-U.S.
Health care cost trend rate	5.50	%	5.00	%
Ultimate health care cost trend rate	4.20	%	5.00	%
Year that the rate reaches the ultimate trend rate	2025		2018

The sensitivity to changes in the assumed health care cost trend rates are as follows:



	Impact on service cost and interest cost			Impact on PBO as of December 31, 2017
1% increase in health care cost trend rate	$	225		$	4,417
1% decrease in health care cost trend rate	$	(178	)	$	(3,538	)

Expected Future Postretirement Benefit Payments

The Company estimates its benefit payments for its postretirement benefit plans during the next ten years to be as follows:



	U.S.		Non-U.S.		Total
2018	$	2,135	$	644	$	2,779
2019	2,220		717		2,937
2020	2,249		766		3,015
2021	2,279		816		3,095
2022	2,304		847		3,151
2023 - 2027	11,352		4,875		16,227

Other

Other postretirement benefits recorded in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets include $5,587 and $4,592 as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively, for termination indemnity plans for two of the Company’s European locations.