Waste Management 2014 Annual Report Download - page 87

Employees
At December 31, 2014, we had approximately 39,800 full-time employees, of which approximately 7,000
were employed in administrative and sales positions and the balance in operations. Approximately 8,500 of our
employees are covered by collective bargaining agreements.
Financial Assurance and Insurance Obligations
Financial Assurance
Municipal and governmental waste service contracts generally require contracting parties to demonstrate
financial responsibility for their obligations under the contract. Financial assurance is also a requirement for
(i) obtaining or retaining disposal site or transfer station operating permits; (ii) supporting variable-rate tax-
exempt debt and (iii) estimated final capping, closure, post-closure and environmental remedial obligations at
many of our landfills. We establish financial assurance using surety bonds, letters of credit, insurance policies,
trust and escrow agreements and financial guarantees. The type of assurance used is based on several factors,
most importantly: the jurisdiction, contractual requirements, market factors and availability of credit capacity.
Surety bonds and insurance policies are supported by (i) a diverse group of third-party surety and insurance
companies; (ii) an entity in which we have a noncontrolling financial interest or (iii) wholly-owned insurance
subsidiary, National Guaranty Insurance Company of Vermont, the sole business of which is to issue surety
bonds and/or insurance policies on our behalf. Letters of credit generally are supported by our $2.25 billion
revolving credit facility and other credit facilities established for that purpose.
Insurance
We carry a broad range of insurance coverages, including general liability, automobile liability, real and
personal property, workers’ compensation, directors’ and officers’ liability, pollution legal liability, business
interruption and other coverages we believe are customary to the industry. Our exposure to loss for insurance
claims is generally limited to the per-incident deductible under the related insurance policy. As of December 31,
2014, our commercial General Liability Insurance Policy carried self-insurance exposures of up to $2.5 million
per incident and our workers’ compensation insurance program carried self-insurance exposures of up to
$5 million per incident. As of December 31, 2014, our auto liability insurance program included a per-incident
base deductible of $5 million, subject to additional deductibles of $4.8 million in the $5 million to $10 million
layer. We do not expect the impact of any known casualty, property, environmental or other contingency to have
a material impact on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Our estimated insurance
liabilities as of December 31, 2014 are summarized in Note 11 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.
The Directors’ and Officers’ Liability Insurance policy we choose to maintain covers only individual
executive liability, often referred to as “Broad Form Side A,” and does not provide corporate reimbursement
coverage, often referred to as “Side B.” The Side A policy covers directors and officers directly for loss,
including defense costs, when corporate indemnification is unavailable. Side A-only coverage cannot be
exhausted by payments to the Company, as the Company is not insured for any money it advances for defense
costs or pays as indemnity to the insured directors and officers.
Regulation
Our business is subject to extensive and evolving federal, state or provincial and local environmental,
health, safety and transportation laws and regulations. These laws and regulations are administered by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”), Environment Canada, and various other federal, state, provincial and
local environmental, zoning, transportation, land use, health and safety agencies in the United States and Canada.
Many of these agencies regularly examine our operations to monitor compliance with these laws and regulations
and have the power to enforce compliance, obtain injunctions or impose civil or criminal penalties in case of
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