(7) Employee Benefits

We have no defined benefit pension plans or any post-retirement benefit plans. We offer our employees a 401(k) Plan, where we match 100% of the first 4% that an employee contributes, a bonus plan based on meeting certain production levels and a discretionary Deferred Bonus Plan for certain key employees. We also offer health benefits to all employees and their families. We have 2,393 participants in our employee health plan. The plan does not cover dental, vision, short-term or long-term disability. These coverages are available on a voluntary basis. We bear some of the risk of our employee health plans. Our health claims are capped at $200,000 per person with a maximum annual exposure of $12.5 million not including premiums.

EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

(in thousands)


	2016		2015		2014
Health benefits, including premiums	$	12,672	$	13,400	$	8,100
401(k) matching	1,458		2,267		815
Deferred bonus plan	588		445		406
Production bonus plan (discontinued September 1, 2014)					373
Total	$	14,718	$	16,112	$	9,694

Our mine employees are also covered by workers’ compensation and such costs for 2016, 2015 and 2014 were approximately $2.3 million, $4.6 million and $2.8 million, respectively. Workers’ compensation is a no-fault system by which individuals who sustain work related injuries or occupational diseases are compensated. Benefits and coverage are mandated by each state which includes disability ratings, medical claims, rehabilitation services, and death and survivor benefits. Our operations are protected from these perils through insurance policies. Our maximum annual exposure is limited to $1 million per occurrence with a $4 million aggregate deductible. Based on discussions and representations from our insurance carrier, we believe that our reserve for our workers’ compensation benefits is adequate. We have a safety conscious workforce and our worker’s compensation injuries have been minimal.