The global business community is in a state of transformation, as organizations work to understand the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on their companies and industries. Recently, The Jacobson Group ran a study to uncover the initial effects of COVID-19 on the U.S. insurance industry’s labor market outlook. Our survey ran from March 31 to April 10, and was open to U.S. insurance carriers and reinsurers across all verticals.
According to the survey’s respondents, 43.2 percent of insurers have adjusted their hiring plans as a result of COVID-19. A third of insurers have made no changes to their original 2020 hiring plans and about 24 percent are still evaluating. 
As a benchmark, the results of our Q1 2020 Semi-Annual Insurance Labor Outlook Study, conducted in partnership with Aon plc, showed 61 percent of insurers planned to increase staff in 2020. Thirty-one percent expected to maintain their current staff sizes and only 8.2 percent thought they would decrease employees by any amount.
Technology roles were reported as the greatest need in both studies. However, the April study found insurers are more likely to add accounting, analytics, claims and sales/marketing roles than they were when surveyed in January.
The hiring shifts brought on by the coronavirus seem relatively minimal in relation to the overall economy. About 18 percent of insurers surveyed are currently on or anticipating a hiring freeze, compared to 37 percent of organizations on hiring freezes across all industries. It’s likely insurance will see delayed labor market effects brought on by the longer-term economic direction.
The Survey of the Current Insurance Labor Market serves as an independent supplement to the Semi-Annual U.S. Insurance Labor Outlook Study, conducted in partnership with Aon plc. For additional study findings, download our infographic here.