Note 7 - Employee Benefit Plans

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2013

Compensation and Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]

Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits Disclosure [Text Block]

Note 7.   Employee Benefit Plans

We sponsor two defined benefit pension plans covering substantially all U.S. employees.  Net periodic pension cost for the plans consisted of the following for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013 and 2012 (in thousands):

	Three Months Ended September 30,
	2013			2012
Service cost	$	569		$	993
Interest cost		422			1,017
Expected return on plan assets		(375	)		(1,145	)
Amortization of prior service cost		(171	)		101
Amortization of net (gain) loss		660			706
Net periodic benefit cost	$	1,105		$	1,672

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2013			2012
Service cost	$	2,684		$	2,980
Interest cost		2,361			3,051
Expected return on plan assets		(2,784	)		(3,435	)
Amortization of prior service cost		24			301
Amortization of net (gain) loss		2,212			2,119
Net periodic benefit cost	$	4,497		$	5,016

The decreased service costs in 2013 versus 2012 were driven primarily by the impact of the amendment to one of the plans discussed below, partially offset by higher staffing and compensation levels.

Effective July 1, 2013, we amended the Hecla Mining Company Retirement Plan (the "Hecla plan") to change the pension benefit formula and other plan provisions. The amendment resulted in the following changes to the Hecla plan:

• The definition of pensionable compensation was changed to exclude fringe benefits, reimbursements or other expense allowances, moving expenses, health and welfare benefits, stock awards, income realized from stock options or restricted stock, income from certain property arrangements, long term incentive awards, premium pay rates for overtime, contributions to or distributions from a nonqualified deferred compensation plan, shift or location differentials, and one-half of any performance-based or annual incentive bonus. Under the terms of the amended Hecla plan, pensionable compensation includes an employee's base salary and other payments of compensation for services performed during the course of employment, elective deferrals not includable in the gross income of the employee under the Internal Revenue Service Code Sections 125, 132(f)(4), 402(e)(3), 402(h), 403(b) and 457, one-half of any performance-based or annual incentive bonus, one-half of any cash safety incentive award, paid time off other than for disability leave, and compensation for overtime at the employee's regular hourly rate of pay for each hour worked.

• For new employees hired after June 30, 2013, pension benefits will be calculated based on the highest average of any five consecutive years (60 months) of pensionable compensation during the final ten years of service instead of three consecutive years during the final ten years of service for employees hired before July 1, 2013.

• Prior to July 1, 2013, we credited each participant's account annually with an amount equal to 6.0% of pensionable compensation, plus an additional 5.7% of the participant's pensionable compensation in excess of the Social Security taxable wage base ("the cash balance pay credit"). Beginning July 1, 2013, the cash balance pay credit will consist of the 6.0% of pensionable compensation without the 5.7% additional credit.

• Access to cash balance accounts following a termination of employment prior to early or normal retirement age has been limited. Prior to the amendment, a cash balance participant could elect to receive a distribution of the vested portion of his or her account at any age following a termination of employment. This change applies only to amounts credited to a cash balance account after June 30, 2013.

• For new employees hired after June 30, 2013, the cash balance pay credit will be earned based on years of plan participation: 3% for 1 through 5 years; 4.5% for 6 through 10 years; 6% after 10 years.

As of September 30, 2013, our current-year contributions to the pension plans totaled $0.7 million, and we expect to contribute an additional $0.3 million over the rest of 2013.