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Litigation, Claims, Contingencies and Other | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2014
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] |
Litigation, Claims, Contingencies and Other | Litigation, Claims, Contingencies and Other Viad and certain of its subsidiaries are plaintiffs or defendants to various actions, proceedings and pending claims, some of which involve, or may involve, compensatory, punitive or other damages. Litigation is subject to many uncertainties and it is possible that some of the legal actions, proceedings or claims could be decided against Viad. Although the amount of liability as of December 31, 2014 with respect to these matters is not ascertainable, Viad believes that any resulting liability, after taking into consideration amounts already provided for and insurance coverage, will not have a material effect on Viad’s business, financial position or results of operations. Viad is subject to various U.S. federal, state and foreign laws and regulations governing the prevention of pollution and the protection of the environment in the jurisdictions in which Viad has or had operations. If the Company has failed to comply with these environmental laws and regulations, civil and criminal penalties could be imposed and Viad could become subject to regulatory enforcement actions in the form of injunctions and cease and desist orders. As is the case with many companies, Viad also faces exposure to actual or potential claims and lawsuits involving environmental matters relating to its past operations. Although it is a party to certain environmental disputes, Viad believes that any resulting liabilities, after taking into consideration amounts already provided for and insurance coverage, will not have a material effect on the Company’s financial position or results of operations. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, Viad had recorded environmental remediation liabilities of $4.7 million and $5.0 million related to previously sold operations, respectively. As of December 31, 2014, Viad had certain obligations under guarantees to third parties on behalf of its subsidiaries. These guarantees are not subject to liability recognition in the consolidated financial statements and relate to leased facilities entered into by Viad’s subsidiary operations. The Company would generally be required to make payments to the respective third parties under these guarantees in the event that the related subsidiary could not meet its own payment obligations. The maximum potential amount of future payments that Viad would be required to make under all guarantees existing as of December 31, 2014 would be $5.9 million. These guarantees relate to leased facilities expiring through October 2017. There are no recourse provisions that would enable Viad to recover from third parties any payments made under the guarantees. Furthermore, there are no collateral or similar arrangements whereby Viad could recover payments. A significant portion of Viad’s employees are unionized and the Company is a party to approximately 100 collective-bargaining agreements, with approximately one-third requiring renegotiation each year. As of December 31, 2014, approximately 30 percent of Viad’s regular full-time employees are covered by collective-bargaining agreements. If the Company were unable to reach an agreement with a union during the collective-bargaining process, the union may call for a strike or work stoppage, which may, under certain circumstances, adversely impact the Company’s businesses and results of operations. Viad believes that relations with its employees are satisfactory and that collective-bargaining agreements expiring in 2015 will be renegotiated in the ordinary course of business without having a material adverse effect on Viad’s operations. The Company entered into new showsite and warehouse agreements with the Chicago Teamsters Local 727, effective January 1, 2014, and those agreements contain provisions that allow the parties to re-open negotiation of the agreements on pension-related issues. The Company is in informal discussions regarding those issues with all relevant parties and is working diligently to resolve those issues in a manner that will be reasonable and equitable to employees, customers and shareholders. Although the Company’s labor relations are currently stable, disruptions pending the outcome of the Chicago Teamsters Local 727 negotiations could occur, as they could with any collective-bargaining agreement negotiation, with the possibility of an adverse impact on the operating results of the Marketing & Events Group. Viad’s businesses contribute to various multi-employer pension plans based on obligations arising under collective bargaining agreements covering its union-represented employees. Viad’s contributions to these plans in 2014, 2013 and 2012 totaled $23.2 million, $20.3 million and $20.7 million, respectively. Based upon the information available to Viad from plan administrators, management believes that several of these multi-employer plans are underfunded. The Pension Protection Act of 2006 requires pension plans underfunded at certain levels to reduce, over defined time periods, the underfunded status. In addition, under current laws, the termination of a plan, or a voluntary withdrawal from a plan by Viad, or a shrinking contribution base to a plan as a result of the insolvency or withdrawal of other contributing employers to such plan, would require Viad to make payments to such plan for its proportionate share of the plan’s unfunded vested liabilities. As of December 31, 2014, the amount of additional funding, if any, that Viad would be required to make related to multi-employer pension plans is not ascertainable. Viad is self-insured up to certain limits for workers’ compensation, employee health benefits, automobile, product and general liability and property loss claims. The aggregate amount of insurance liabilities (up to the Company’s retention limit) related to Viad’s continuing operations was approximately $19.9 million as of December 31, 2014. Of this total, $12.4 million related to workers’ compensation liabilities and the remaining $7.5 million related to general/auto liability claims. Viad has also retained and provided for certain insurance liabilities in conjunction with previously sold businesses totaling $4.5 million as of December 31, 2014, related to workers’ compensation liabilities. Provisions for losses for claims incurred, including estimated claims incurred but not yet reported, are made based on Viad’s historical experience, claims frequency and other factors. A change in the assumptions used could result in an adjustment to recorded liabilities. Viad has purchased insurance for amounts in excess of the self-insured levels, which generally range from $0.2 million to $0.4 million on a per claim basis. Viad does not maintain a self-insured retention pool fund as claims are paid from current cash resources at the time of settlement. Viad’s net cash payments in connection with these insurance liabilities were $4.8 million, $6.6 million and $5.6 million in 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively. In addition, as of December 31, 2014 Viad had recorded insurance liabilities of $7.7 million related to continuing operations in excess of the self-insured levels for which Viad remains the primary obligor. Of this total, $3.1 million related to workers’ compensation liabilities and the remaining $4.6 million related to general/auto liability claims. The Company has recorded those amounts in other deferred items and liabilities in Viad’s Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets with a corresponding receivable in other investments and assets.

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