Retirement Plans

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2013

Retirement Plans [Abstract]

RETIREMENT PLANS

13. RETIREMENT PLANS

Retirement Plans

The Company has five retirement plans which cover its hourly and salaried employees in the United States: three defined benefit plans (one active / two frozen) and two defined contribution plans.  Employees are eligible to participate in the appropriate plan based on employment classification.  The Company's funding to the defined benefit and defined contribution plans are governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), applicable plan policy and investment guidelines.  The Company policy is to contribute at least the minimum in accordance with the funding standards of ERISA.

The Company’s subsidiary, L.B. Foster Rail Technologies, Inc. (Rail Technologies), maintains two defined contribution plans for its employees in Canada, as well as a post-retirement benefit plan.  In the United Kingdom, Rail Technologies maintains both a defined contribution plan and a defined benefit plan.  These plans are discussed in further detail below.

United States Defined Benefit Plans

Net periodic pension costs for the United States defined benefit pension plans for the three-month periods ended March 31, 2013 and 2012 are as follows:

		Three Months Ended
		March 31,
		2013		2012
Service cost	$	8	$	8
Interest cost		177		187
Expected return on plan assets		(214)		(203)
Recognized net actuarial loss		53		49
Net periodic benefit cost	$	24	$	41

The Company expects to contribute approximately $555 to its United States defined benefit plans in 2013.  No contributions were made during the three months ended March 31, 2013.

United Kingdom Defined Benefit Plans

Net periodic pension costs for the United Kingdom defined benefit pension plan for the three-month periods ended March 31, 2013 and 2012 are as follows:

		Three Months Ended
		March 31,
		2013		2012
Interest cost	$	80	$	83
Expected return on plan assets		(68)		(71)
Amortization of transition amount		(11)		(12)
Recognized net actuarial loss		53		54
Net periodic cost	$	54	$	54

United Kingdom regulations require trustees to adopt a prudent approach to funding required contributions to defined benefit pension plans. Employer contributions of $248 are anticipated to the United Kingdom L.B. Foster Rail Technologies, Inc. pension plan during 2013.  For the three months ended March 31, 2013, the Company contributed approximately $11 to the plan. 

Defined Contribution Plans

The Company has a domestic defined contribution plan that covers all non-union hourly and all salaried employees (Salaried Plan). The Salaried Plan permits both pre-tax and after-tax employee contributions. Participants can contribute, subject to statutory limitations, between 1% and 75% of eligible pre-tax pay and between 1% and 100% of eligible after-tax pay.  The Company's employer match is 100% of the first 1% of deferred eligible compensation and up to 50% of the next 6%, based on years of service, of deferred eligible compensation, for a total maximum potential match of 4%.  The Company may also make discretionary contributions to the Salaried Plan. 

The expense associated with this plan for the three months ended March 31 was $449 in 2013 and $467 in 2012.

The Company also has a domestic defined contribution plan for union hourly employees with contributions made by both the participants and the Company based on various formulas (Union Plan). The expense associated with this active plan for the three months ended March 31, 2013 and 2012 was $16 and $17, respectively.

Rail Technologies, maintains a defined contribution plan covering all non-union employees at its Montreal, Quebec, Canada location (Montreal Plan).  Under the terms of the Montreal Plan, the employer may contribute 4% of each employee’s compensation as a non-elective contribution and may also contribute 30% of the first 6% of each employee’s compensation contributed to the Montreal Plan.  Contributions to this plan were $35 and $27, for the three months ended March 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively. 

The subsidiary also maintains a defined contribution plan covering substantially all employees at its United Kingdom locations (U.K. Plan).  Benefits under the U.K. Plan are provided under no formal written agreement.  Under the terms of the defined contribution U.K. Plan, the employer may make non-elective contributions of between 3% and 10% of each employee’s compensation. Contributions to this plan were $33 and $27 for the three months ended March 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively. 

Finally, Rail Technologies maintains a defined contribution plan covering substantially all of the employees in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company (Burnaby Plan).  Under the terms of the Burnaby Plan, the employer may contribute 4% of each employee’s compensation as a non-elective contribution and may also contribute 30% of the first 6% of each employee’s compensation contributed to the Burnaby Plan. Contributions to this plan were $45 and $39 for the three months ended March 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively.