Employee Benefit Plans

6 Months Ended

Jun. 29, 2012

Defined Benefit Plans and Other Postretirement Benefit Plans Disclosures [Abstract]

Employee Benefit Plans

Employee Benefit Plans

The Company sponsors defined benefit pension plans principally for salaried, management personnel.  For employees hired on or before December 31, 2002, the plans provide eligible employees with retirement benefits based predominantly on years of service and compensation rates near retirement.  For employees hired in 2003 or thereafter, benefits are determined based on a cash balance formula, which provides benefits by utilizing interest and pay credits based upon age, service and compensation. 

In addition to these plans, the Company sponsors a self-insured, post-retirement medical plan and a life insurance plan that provide benefits to full-time, salaried, management employees, hired prior to January 1, 2003, upon their retirement if certain eligibility requirements are met.  Medicare-eligible retirees are covered by a health reimbursement arrangement, which is an employer-funded account that can be used for reimbursement of eligible medical expenses. Non-Medicare eligible retirees will continue to be covered by the existing self-insured program.  The life insurance plan is non-contributory.

The Company engages independent actuaries to compute the amounts of liabilities and expenses relating to these plans subject to the assumptions that the Company selects.  These amounts are reviewed by management.  The following table describes the components of expense / (income) related to net benefit expense:

	Pension Benefits
(Dollars in millions)	Second Quarters						Six Months
	2012			2011			2012			2011
Service Cost	$	11		$	10		$	22		$	20
Interest Cost	30			30			61			60
Expected Return on Plan Assets	(42		)	(40		)	(81		)	(79		)
Amortization of Net Loss	21			18			41			36
Total Expense	$	20		$	18		$	43		$	37

	Other Post-retirement Benefits
(Dollars in millions)	Second Quarters						Six Months
	2012			2011			2012			2011
Service Cost	$	1		$	1		$	2		$	2
Interest Cost	4			3			8			6
Amortization of Net Loss	3			2			5			3
Amortization of Prior Service Costs	(1		)	(1		)	(1		)	(1		)
Total Expense	$	7		$	5		$	14		$	10

Qualified pension plan obligations are funded in accordance with prescribed regulatory requirements and with an objective of meeting minimum funding requirements necessary to avoid restrictions on flexibility of plan operation and benefit payments.  During first quarter 2012, the Company made a contribution of $275 million to its qualified pension plans, of which $25 million was the required minimum contribution. At this time, the Company anticipates that no further contributions to its qualified pension plans will be required in 2012. For further details, see Note 8, Employee Benefit Plans, in CSX's most recent annual report on Form 10-K.