Group Voyagers, Inc. v. Employers Insurance

**What Happened** Group Voyagers, Inc. (GVI), a travel company, deliberately chose not to include their tour directors in the company pension plan. When this became an issue, GVI tried to get their insurance company, Wausau, to cover any costs or legal problems that might come from excluding these workers from pension benefits. The insurance company refused to pay, saying their policy didn't cover this situation. **What the Court Decided** The appeals court sided with the insurance company. The court ruled that because GVI intentionally decided to exclude tour directors from pension benefits, this wasn't the type of mistake or accident that insurance policies typically cover. Insurance generally covers negligent errors, not deliberate business decisions. Since GVI made a conscious choice to deny benefits, the insurance company didn't have to pay. **Why This Matters for Workers** This case shows that when employers intentionally exclude workers from benefits like pensions, they can't hide behind insurance if legal problems arise. While this doesn't automatically mean excluded workers will get benefits, it does mean employers must take full responsibility for their deliberate decisions to deny benefits to certain employees.