The Company and certain of its subsidiaries have pension and profit sharing plans covering substantially all of their employees. The Company’s defined benefit pension plan, The Pension Agreement between Akro-Mils and United Steelworkers of America Local No. 1761-02, provides benefits primarily based upon a fixed amount for each year of service. The plan was frozen in 2007, and thus benefits for service were no longer accumulated after this date.

Net periodic pension cost for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2017 and 2016 was as follows:

	For the Year Ended December 31,
	2018			2017			2016
Interest cost	$	224		$	253		$	270
Expected return on assets		(317	)		(295	)		(319	)
Amortization of net loss		84			96			82
Net periodic pension cost	$	(9	)	$	54		$	33

	December 31,
	2018			2017
Projected benefit obligation at beginning of year	$	6,579		$	6,503
Interest cost		224			253
Actuarial loss (gain)		(362	)		276
Expenses paid		(135	)		(84	)
Benefits paid		(362	)		(369	)
Projected benefit obligation at end of year	$	5,944		$	6,579
Accumulated benefit obligation at end of year	$	5,944		$	6,579

The assumptions used to determine the net periodic benefit cost and benefit obligations are as follows:

	December 31,
	2018			2017			2016
Discount rate for net periodic pension cost		3.50	%		4.00	%		4.30	%
Discount rate for benefit obligations		4.20	%		3.50	%		4.00	%
Expected long-term return of plan assets		7.50	%		7.75	%		7.75	%

The expected long-term rate of return assumption is based on the actual historical rate of return on assets adjusted to reflect recent market conditions and future expectations consistent with the Company’s current asset allocation and investment policy. In the current year, the Company’s asset allocation and investment policy transitioned from a total-return strategy to a liability-driven strategy. This revised policy shifts from equities and market duration fixed income and into fixed income investments that are managed to match the duration of the underlying pension liability. The assumed discount rates represent long-term high quality corporate bond rates commensurate with the liability duration of the plan.

The following table reflects the change in the fair value of the plan’s assets:

	December 31,
	2018			2017
Fair value of plan assets at beginning of year	$	5,261		$	5,183
Actual return on plan assets		(27	)		531
Company contributions		—			—
Expenses paid		(135	)		(84	)
Benefits paid		(362	)		(369	)
Fair value of plan assets at end of year	$	4,737		$	5,261

The fair value of plan assets as of December 31, 2018 consist of mutual funds valued at $2,352 and pooled separate accounts valued at $2,385. The mutual funds were categorized as Level 1 and were determined based on period end, closing quoted prices in active markets. The pooled separate accounts are measured at net asset value as a practical expedient to estimate fair value and are not classified in the fair value hierarchy as of December 31, 2018. Each of the pooled separate accounts invest in multiple fixed securities and provide for daily redemptions by the plan with no advance notice requirements, and have redemption prices that are determined by the fund’s net asset value per unit with no redemption fees.

The fair value of plan assets as of December 31, 2017, which consisted mainly of mutual funds, were all categorized as Level 1 and were determined based on period end closing, quoted prices in active markets.

The weighted average asset allocations at December 31, 2018 and 2017 were as follows:

	December 31,
	2018			2017
U.S. Equities securities		50	%		72	%
U.S. Debt securities		50	%		24	%
Cash		—			4	%
Total		100	%		100	%

The following table provides a reconciliation of the funded status of the plan at December 31, 2018 and 2017:

	December 31,
	2018			2017
Projected benefit obligation	$	5,944		$	6,579
Plan assets at fair value		4,737			5,261
Funded status	$	(1,207	)	$	(1,318	)

The funded status shown above is included in Other Liabilities in the Company’s Consolidated Statements of Financial Position at December 31, 2018 and 2017. The Company expects to make a contribution to the plan of $30 in 2019.

2019	$	372
2020		376
2021		377
2022		374
2023		374
2024-2028		1,889

The Myers Industries Profit Sharing and 401(k) Plan is maintained for the Company’s U.S. based employees, not covered under defined benefit plans, who have met eligibility service requirements. The Company recognized expense related to the 401(k) employer matching contribution in the amount of $2,216, $2,302 and $2,324 in 2018, 2017 and 2016, respectively.

In addition, the Company has a Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan (“SERP”) to provide certain participating senior executives with retirement benefits in addition to amounts payable under the 401(k) plan. Expense related to the SERP was approximately $33, $128 and $192 for the years ended December 2018, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The SERP liability was based on the discounted present value of expected future benefit payments using a discount rate of 4.2% at December 31, 2018 and 3.5% at December 31, 2017. The SERP liability was approximately $2,449 and $2,923 at December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively, and is included in Accrued Employee Compensation and Other Liabilities on the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Financial Position. The SERP is unfunded.