12. RETIREMENT PLANS

Retirement Plans

The Company has seven retirement plans which cover its hourly and salaried employees in the United States: three defined benefit plans (one active / two frozen) and four 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’s 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.

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, 2015 and 2014 are as follows:



		Three Months Ended
		March 31,
		2015		2014

Service cost	$	10	$	6
Interest cost		185		193
Expected return on plan assets		(204)		(242)
Recognized net actuarial loss		69		16
Net periodic pension cost (income)	$	60	$	(27)

The Company does not expect to contribute to its United States defined benefit plans in 2015.

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, 2015 and 2014 are as follows:



		Three Months Ended
		March 31,
		2015		2014

Interest cost	$	76	$	99
Expected return on plan assets		(83)		(94)
Amortization of prior service costs and transition amount		5		(7)
Recognized net actuarial loss		58		50
Net periodic pension cost	$	56	$	48

United Kingdom regulations require trustees to adopt a prudent approach to funding required contributions to defined benefit pension plans. Employer contributions of $270 are anticipated to the United Kingdom L.B. Foster Rail Technologies, Inc. pension plan during 2015. For the three months ended March 31, 2015, the Company contributed approximately $69 to the plan.

Defined Contribution Plans

The Company sponsors seven defined contribution plans for hourly and salaried employees across our domestic and international facilities. The following table summarizes the expense associated with the contributions made to these plans.



		2015		2014

United States	$	682	$	573
Canada		59		64
United Kingdom		83		38
	$	824	$	675