NOTE 11. EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

Defined Contribution Plans

We maintain the US Ecology, Inc., 401(k) Savings and Retirement Plan ("the Plan") for employees who voluntarily contribute a portion of their compensation, thereby deferring income for federal income tax purposes. The Plan covers substantially all of our employees in the United States. Participants may contribute a percentage of salary up to the IRS limitations. The Company contributes a matching contribution equal to 55% of participant contributions up to 6% of compensation. The Company contributed matching contributions to the Plan of $521,000, $436,000 and $364,000 in 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

During 2014, EQ sponsored a defined contribution 401(k) plan for its nonunion employees. The plan allowed all eligible employees to make elective pretax contributions in an amount not to exceed limits established by the Internal Revenue Service. Additionally, EQ made matching contributions to the plan on behalf of the employee in the amount of 50% of the employee's elected contributions, not to exceed 3% of the employee's compensation. The Company contributed matching contributions to this plan of $649,000, for the post-acquisition period from June 17, 2014 through December 31, 2014. Effective January 1, 2015, the EQ defined contribution 401(k) plan was discontinued and all eligible employees were transitioned to the US Ecology, Inc., 401(k) Savings and Retirement Plan.

We also maintain the Stablex Canada Inc. Simplified Pension Plan ("the SPP"). This defined contribution plan covers substantially all of our employees at our Blainville, Québec facility in Canada. Participants receive a company contribution equal to 5% of their annual salary. The Company contributed $510,000, $415,000 and $365,000 to the SPP in 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

Multi-Employer Defined Benefit Pension Plans

Certain of the Company's wholly-owned subsidiaries acquired in connection with the acquisition of EQ on June 17, 2014 participate in seven multi-employer defined benefit pension plans under the terms of collective bargaining agreements covering most of the subsidiaries' union employees. Contributions are determined in accordance with the provisions of negotiated labor contracts and are generally based on stipulated rates per hours worked. Benefits under these plans are generally based on compensation levels and years of service.

The financial risks of participating in multi-employer plans are different from single employer defined benefit pension plans in the following respects:

•	Assets contributed to the multi-employer plan by one employer may be used to provide benefits to employees of other participating employers.
•	If a participating employer discontinues contributions to a plan, the unfunded obligations of the plan may be borne by the remaining participating employers.
•	If a participating employer chooses to stop participating in a plan, a withdrawal liability may be created based on the unfunded vested benefits for all employees in the plan.

Information regarding significant multi-employer pension benefit plans in which the Company participates is shown in the following table:

					Pension Protection Act Certified Zone Status
	Plan Employer ID Number		Plan Number		Pension Protection Act Certified Zone Status
Name of Plan	Plan Employer ID Number		Plan Number		2014	2013
Operating Engineers Local 324 Pension Fund		38-1900637		001	Red	Red

During the post-acquisition period from June 17, 2014 to December 31, 2014, the Company contributed $530,000 to the Operating Engineers Local 324 Pension Fund and $407,000 to other multi-employer plans not individually significant.

Based on information as of April 30, 2014 and 2013, the year end of the Operating Engineers Local 324 Pension Fund (the "Local 324 Plan"), the Company's contributions made to the Local 324 Plan represented less than 5% of total contributions received by the Local 324 Plan during the 2014 and 2013 plan years.

The certified zone status in the table above is defined by the Department of Labor and the Pension Protection Act of 2006 and represents the level at which the plan is funded. Plans in the red zone are less than 65% funded; plans in the yellow zone are less than 80% funded; and plans in the green zone are at least 80% funded. The certified zone status is as of the Local 324 Plan's year end of April 30, 2014 and 2013.

A financial improvement or rehabilitation plan, as defined under ERISA, was adopted by the Local 324 Plan on March 17, 2011 and the Rehabilitation Period began May 1, 2013.

As of December 31, 2014, 296 employees were employed under union collective bargaining agreements with the Local 324 Operating Engineers union. On September 30, 2014, a collective bargaining agreement covering 113 employees at the Taylor, MI facility expired without being renewed, although renewal negotiations are ongoing. The remaining collective bargaining agreements expire on November 30, 2015, and April 30, 2017.