Employee Benefits

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2019

Employee Benefits [Abstract]

Employee Benefits

Note 11. Employee Benefits

We provided, and continue to provide, certain medical and dental care benefits to eligible retired U.S. and Canadian employees.  The postretirement medical plans to eligible U.S. employees, other than to former union employees, and eligible Canadian employees terminated on December 31, 2016.  As related to the U.S. non-union employees, annually and through the year ended December 31, 2016, a fixed amount was credited into a Health Reimbursement account (“HRA”) to cover both medical and dental costs for all current and future eligible retirees.  Balances in the HRA accounts upon termination of the plan at December 31, 2016 remained available for use until December 31, 2018.  Any remaining balance at December 31, 2018 was forfeited.  Postretirement medical and dental benefits to the remaining eligible 19 former union employees in the U.S. will continue to be provided.  The postretirement medical and dental benefit obligation for the former union employees in the U.S. as of June 30, 2019, and the net periodic benefit cost for our postretirement benefit plans for the three months and six months ended June 30, 2019 and 2018 were not material.

We maintain a defined contribution Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan for key employees.  Under the plan, these employees may elect to defer a portion of their compensation and, in addition, we may at our discretion make contributions to the plan on behalf of the employees.  In March 2019, we made company contributions to the plan of $0.3 million related to calendar year 2018.

We also have an Employee Stock Ownership Plan and Trust for employees who are not covered by a collective bargaining agreement.  In connection therewith, we maintain an employee benefits trust to which we contribute shares of treasury stock.  We are authorized to instruct the trustees to distribute such shares toward the satisfaction of our future obligations under the plan. The shares held in trust are not considered outstanding for purposes of calculating earnings per share until they are committed to be released.  The trustees will vote the shares in accordance with their fiduciary duties.  During the six months ended June 30, 2019, we contributed to the trust an additional 49,100 shares from our treasury and released 49,100 shares from the trust leaving 200 shares remaining in the trust as of June 30, 2019.