8. Pension and Post-Retirement Benefit Plans

The Company maintains pension plans covering union and certain non-union employees. For more information on the Company’s retirement plans, see Note 13 – “Pension Plans and Defined Contribution Plan” to the Company’s Consolidated Financial Statements in the 2016 Form 10-K. A summary of net periodic pension cost related to the Company’s pension plans for the three and six months ended June 30, 2017 and 2016 was as follows (dollars in thousands):

	For the Three Months Ended June 30,						For the Six Months Ended June 30,
	2017			2016			2017			2016
Service cost - benefit earned during the period	$	321		$	317		$	642		$	634
Interest cost on projected benefit obligation		1,862			2,173			3,724			4,516
Expected return on plan assets		(2,272	)		(2,547	)		(4,544	)		(5,265	)
Amortization of prior service cost		72			74			144			148
Amortization of actuarial loss		1,062			1,321			2,124			2,740
Settlement loss		-			11,744			-			11,744
Net periodic pension cost	$	1,045		$	13,082		$	2,090		$	14,517

The Company made cash contributions to its pension plans of $10.0 million in the three and six months ended June 30, 2017 and $10.0 million during the six months ended June 30, 2016. Additional contributions, if any, for 2017 have not yet been determined. As of June 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016, the Company had accrued $30.0 million and $40.2 million, respectively, of pension liability within “Other long-term liabilities” on the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Defined Contribution Plan

The Company has defined contribution plans covering certain salaried associates and non-union hourly paid associates (the “Plan”). The Plan permits associates to defer a portion of their pre-tax and after-tax salary as contributions to the Plan. The Plan also provides for Company-funded discretionary contributions as well as matching associates’ salary deferral contributions, at the discretion of the Board of Directors. The Company recorded expense of $1.9 million and $3.7 million for the Company match of employee contributions to the Plan for the three and six months ended June 30, 2017, respectively and the three and six months ended June 30, 2016, respectively.