Jacobson/Aon study: 55% of US insurers plan staff increases over next 12 months while 12% plan cuts

By Navneeta Nandan

Aug 18 - (The Insurer) - Over the next year, 12% of U.S. insurance companies are planning to reduce their workforce, as per a survey conducted in the first quarter of 2025, up from 10% in the January 2024 study but down from 14% in July, while 55% of insurers plan to increase staff.

Reorganization, followed by automation and areas being overstaffed are the most common reasons for companies to decrease their headcount, said The Jacobson Group and the performance benchmarking division of Aon's strategy and technology group Ward in their insurance labor market survey.

Personal lines carriers expect a further decrease in their headcount over the year.

Over the next six months, 75% of the companies expect the employees to work a hybrid schedule, after which 11% expect employees to be more in-office.

Some 3% of companies require their employees to be in-office every day, down from 6% last year.

The survey reported that insurers' employment expectations have remained stable over the past year. The headcount of the industry grew 1.17%, compared to the expected 1.21%.

Overall, 55% of companies plan to increase their headcounts during the next year, driven by life and health segment at 60%. Companies that plan to add staff over the year include large companies with 64%, followed by 60% of small companies and medium-sized companies at 38%.

The report stated that the primary reasons for companies to increase their staff include business volume (39%), followed by potential expansion or entry in newer markets (34%).

The report projected that if the industry follows its plans, it can see a 1.08% increase in industry employment by creating new jobs in the next year.

Technology, underwriting and claims are the roles that are expected to have the greatest growth during the next 12 months.

Loss control, actuarial, product management and accounting are the areas where companies are most likely to add experienced staff. Claims and operations are the roles which are most likely to add entry-level positions. Actuarial, executive and analytics positions are the most difficult to fill.

Some 14% of the companies think that the ability to hire talent has become more difficult from last year, up from 11% in the July 2024 survey.

The report said that the total industry 12-month voluntary and involuntary turnover is slowing down compared to last year. However, personal lines have reported an increase in their involuntary turnover percentage in 12-month and six-month periods.

The average six-month voluntary turnover is 5.8%, which is 2.7 points lower than the 12-month average of 8.5%. The involuntary turnover is also lower at 2.9% for six months, compared to 4.1% for 12 months.

Overall, 49% of the companies said that change in market share will drive their expected revenue changes, while 27% stated pricing factors.

74% of the companies expect the revenue to grow during the next 12 months, 3 points lower than the January 2024 figure. 4% of the companies expect a decrease in revenue growth, which is one point higher than July.

Commercial lines P&C companies are the most optimistic to increase revenue as 79% expect growth, compared to 67% of balanced lines and 65% of personal lines companies. 73% of life/health companies expect an increase in revenue.