August 2023: Labor Market Pulse

Posted by The Jacobson Group

Despite rising costs for health insurance and profitability issues within property and casualty, the industry’s talent landscape remains strong. The unemployment rate for insurance carriers and related activities dropped by more than 1.5 points last month, following a brief spike in June. Industry employment also continues to grow, with the sector adding nearly 30,000 jobs since the beginning of 2023. 

While wages are rising in most areas, this growth appears to be slightly slowing. The number of open jobs within the broader finance and insurance industry has dropped in the past few months, and average total turnover is at its lowest level since 2016. Yet, there is still an excess of jobs in relation to the individuals available to fill them. 

For more insight on the current labor market and what insurers can expect throughout the next 12 months, join us for our complimentary Q3 2023 Insurance Labor Market Study results webinar, taking place on Aug. 17 at 1 p.m. CT. Register here: https://jcbsn.gr/2023q3-webinar. 
 
AT-A-GLANCE NUMBERS

PULSE icons --01Unemployment for the insurance carriers and related activities sector decreased to 1.6% in July. 
PULSE icons --02The insurance carriers and related activities sector gained 8,300 jobs in July.
PULSE icons --03At more than 2.9 million jobs, industry employment increased by approximately 33,900 jobs compared to July 2022.
PULSE icons --04The U.S. unemployment rate decreased to 3.5% in July and the overall economy added 187,000 jobs.

 

INDUSTRY HIGHLIGHTS

  • On a year-to-year basis, June* insurance industry employment saw job increases in reinsurance (up 2.6%), TPAs (up 2.2%), life/health (up 1.6%), property and casualty (up 1.3%), and agents/brokers (up 1%). Meanwhile, job decreases were seen in title (down 9.6%) and claims (down 4.5%).
  • On a year-to-year basis, June* saw weekly wage increases in property and casualty (up 10.9%), title (up 6.2%), TPAs (up 6.2%), life/health (up 4%), agents/brokers (up 3.5%) and claims (up 0.9%). Meanwhile, wage decreases were seen in reinsurance (down 6.1%). 

 0723-02   0823-01

BLS Reported Adjustments: Adjusted employment numbers for June show the industry saw a decrease of 700 jobs, compared to the previously reported increase of 3,200 jobs. The BLS continues to revise numbers to be most accurate, which may contribute to inconsistencies, depending on when reports were pulled.

*The BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey report and reports on wages and employment for the industry category are only available for two months prior.

The source for the data represented in PULSE is the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Insurance data is derived from the insurance carriers and related activities sector.