Exclusive: Allied World the latest carrier to mandate five in-office days for employees

By Isha Marathe

May 16 - (The Insurer) - Allied World has become the latest carrier to mandate its employees go back to a five-day in-office work week, with the action taking effect from September 29, based on an internal memo the company sent to its U.S. and Canada employees.

Sources with knowledge of the situation said the mandate applies globally across the Fairfax Financial-owned carrier's operations.

"Over the past several months, Allied World has undertaken a review of our Remote Work Policy," the memo, which The Insurer viewed, said.

"Given the current environment, it's increasingly important that our people are together – collaborating on priorities, helping train our newer colleagues, and creating the best results possible."

Allied World declined to comment.

The memo said that all employees assigned to an office location will be in the office on a full-time basis throughout the work week.

Allied World joins several insurers that have rolled back on COVID-era flexible, hybrid and work-from-home options for their employees.

A number of carriers in the U.S. insurance industry, including Chubb and Starr, had already mandated a return to five days working on-site for employees, depending on travel commitments, in line with similar policies at many businesses in other industries.

However, many insurers have continued to maintain hybrid working policies, with employees required to be in the office less than five days a week, while among those that have gone back to five days, a number continue to highlight a flexible approach to implementation and enforcement.

Markel told The Insurer that its U.S. offices have hybrid policies, with a three-day back-to-office mandate.

"Our U.S. locations work in a hybrid model, with the option to work virtually two days a week, and two weeks a year to work fully remote," said Chelsea Rarrick, director of external communications at Markel.

"For our international offices, our guidance is 2-4 days in the office, and decisions are leader-led... Our hybrid work model originated during the COVID pandemic, and this has been in place for several years."

Similarly, a Travelers spokesperson told The Insurer that the company has had a three-day in-office policy since 2022.

"All of our employees continue to have the option of a hybrid work arrangement, meaning that most – depending on their role – have the flexibility to work from home up to two days each week," the spokesperson said.

"We don’t currently have plans to change (these work arrangements)."

AIG has had a four to five-day in-office policy for its employees.

Chubb currently has a five-day in-office policy for its employees.

Certain staff members at Chubb, Argo Group, Starr Insurance, Kinsale, FM and Jencap said they have been mandated back to the office five days a week, according to information submitted and posted on the Instagram account 'InsuranceWomen.'

It has not been confirmed whether the information posted to 'InsuranceWomen' relates to specific company offices or companywide actions.

An FM spokesperson commented: "In late 2023, FM resumed its office-based culture with a high level of flexibility, which is serving us well."

The other companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Staff at Axa XL posted to the same account that they have been mandated back more flexibly, to three days on-site.

The company did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

On the broker side, wholesaler Amwins, which was also mentioned in the 'InsuranceWomen' post, has had a required three days in the office "for a while," said CEO Scott Purviance.

"We've been encouraging folks and are investing in our office space," Purviance said.

"We believe that five days a week is the best thing for anybody who wants to continue to advance and have opportunity (and) build relationships... But we also understand the flexibility that folks have with the ability to work from home.