4. Pensions and Other Postretirement Benefit Plans

Pension Plans

The Company has defined benefit pension plans covering certain U.S. and non-U.S. employees. The U.S. qualified defined benefit pension plan has been closed to new participants since October 1998 and, as of February 2009, benefits accrued under this plan were frozen. As a result of the freeze, employees covered by the pension plan will receive, at retirement, benefits already accrued through February 2009, but no new benefits accrue after that date. Benefit accruals under the U.S. Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan ("SERP") were similarly frozen. The eligibility, benefit formulas, and contribution requirements for plans outside of the U.S. vary by location.

Other Postretirement Benefits

In addition to providing pension benefits, the Company provides various medical, dental, and life insurance benefits for certain retired United States employees. U.S. employees hired prior to 2005 may become eligible for medical and dental benefits if they reach normal retirement age while working for the Company. Benefits provided under this plan are subject to change. Retirees share in the cost of these benefits. Effective January 2005, any new employees who wish to be covered under this plan will be responsible for the full cost of such benefits. In 2008, we changed the cost sharing arrangement under this program such that increases in health care costs are the responsibility of plan participants.

In the third quarter of 2013, we reduced the U.S. postretirement life insurance benefit for retirees and eliminated that benefit for active employees, which resulted in a reduction to plan liabilities of $8.0 million, and expense for the third quarter of 2013 was reduced by $0.2 million. Prior to calculating the effect of this benefit change, we remeasured the plan liabilities. Compared to the actuarial assumptions used for calculating liabilities at December 31, 2012, we increased the discount rate from 3.93 percent to 4.85 percent and updated our participant data to reflect reduced participation. These changes reduced plan liabilities by $14.4 million.

The Company also provides certain postretirement life insurance benefits to retired employees in Canada. The Company accrues the cost of providing postretirement benefits during the active service period of the employees. The Company currently funds the plan as claims are paid.

The composition of the net periodic benefit plan cost for the nine months ended September 30, 2013 and 2012 was as follows:

	Pension plans		Other postretirement benefits
(in thousands)	2013	2012	2013	2012

Components of net periodic benefit cost:
Service cost	$2,526	$54	$789	$804
Interest cost	5,999	9,824	2,374	2,766
Expected return on assets	(6,103)	(9,436)	-	-
Amortization of prior service cost/(credit)	27	339	(2,818)	(2,751)
Amortization of transition obligation	51	59	-	-
Amortization of net actuarial loss	2,357	3,774	2,606	2,412
Settlement	315	119,735	-	-
Net periodic benefit cost	$5,172	$124,349	$2,951	$3,231

In the first quarter of 2012, the Company announced a plan to significantly reduce its pension plan liabilities by settling certain pension obligations leading to settlement charges totaling $119.7 million, which was recorded in the first two quarters of 2012. Expense for the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2013 includes a settlement charge of $0.3 million.