Employee Benefit Plans

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2012

Employee Benefit Plans

14. Employee Benefit Plans

Mattel and certain of its subsidiaries have qualified and nonqualified retirement plans covering substantially all employees of these companies, which are more fully described in Note 6 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in its 2011 Annual Report on Form 10-K.

A summary of the components of net periodic benefit cost for Mattel’s defined benefit pension plans is as follows:

	For the Three Months Ended						For the Nine Months Ended
	September 30, 2012			September 30, 2011			September 30, 2012			September 30, 2011
	(In thousands)
Service cost	$	3,326		$	2,961		$	9,827		$	9,166
Interest cost		7,501			7,124			22,472			21,777
Expected return on plan assets		(7,837	)		(6,807	)		(23,361	)		(19,409	)
Amortization of prior service cost		(398	)		427			(377	)		1,384
Recognized actuarial loss		5,923			4,233			17,403			11,501
Settlement loss		3,534			—			3,534			—
	$	12,049		$	7,938		$	29,498		$	24,419

A summary of the components of net periodic benefit cost for Mattel’s postretirement benefit plans is as follows:

	For the Three Months Ended					For the Nine Months Ended
	September 30, 2012		September 30, 2011			September 30, 2012		September 30, 2011
	(In thousands)
Service cost	$	21	$	15		$	59	$	55
Interest cost		369		307			1,059		1,182
Recognized actuarial loss (gain)		27		(107	)		87		(36	)
	$	417	$	215		$	1,205	$	1,201

During the nine months ended September 30, 2012, Mattel made cash contributions totaling approximately $50 million and $3 million to its defined benefit pension and postretirement benefit plans, respectively.