Note 8 - Accrued Retirement Benefits

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Notes to Financial Statements

Retirement Benefits [Text Block]

8 . ACCRUED RETIREMENT BENEFITS

Accrued retirement benefits at

September 30, 2020

and

December 31, 2019

consisted of the following:

	September 30,			December 31,
	2020			2019
	(unaudited)			(audited)
	(in thousands)
Defined benefit pension plan	$	7,324		$	7,658
Non-qualified retirement plans		2,169			2,209
Total		9,493			9,867
Less current portion		(165	)		(165	)
Non-current portion of accrued retirement benefits	$	9,328		$	9,702

The Company has a defined benefit pension plan which covers substantially all of its former bargaining and non-bargaining full-time, part-time and intermittent employees. In

2011,

pension benefits under the plan were frozen. The Company also has unfunded non-qualified retirement plans covering

nine

of its former executives. The non-qualified retirement plans were frozen in

2009

and future vesting of additional benefits was discontinued.

The net periodic benefit costs for pension and post-retirement benefits for the

nine

months ended

September 30, 2020

and

2019

were as follows:

	Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended
	September 30,						September 30,
	(unaudited)						(unaudited)
	2020			2019			2020			2019
	(in thousands)
Interest cost	$	408		$	527		$	1,225		$	1,580
Expected return on plan assets		(489	)		(480	)		(1,483	)		(1,446	)
Amortization of net loss		206			211			617			634
Pension and other postretirement expenses	$	125		$	258		$	359		$	768