US insurance industry wipes out 3M of hiring with Sept. job declines

The broad US insurance industry may have pared employment back by as many as 9300 in September, the strongest single month decline since early 2021, data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) suggested.

September job losses, if confirmed in a month’s time, more than offset heavy prior month gains, cutting the YTD gain half a point to a fractional 0.9% and leaving the industry still pining for the pre-COVID mark.

The prior month hiring spree was put to continued heavy gains in agencies and brokerages plus a fifth month of gains for P&C carriers, offsetting declines for life & health carriers plus title insurance.

P&C direct carriers added 1700 jobs for a 0.3% monthly gain, rendering only its third month of annual increases. The sub-group is still down 6.2% on pre-COVID levels.

A 5200 monthly job gain in agencies and brokerages is the latest in a string of major gains for the segment this year. Employment in the sub-sector, which only ever suffered one month of major decline early in the pandemic, is now 8% above pre-COVID levels and up 2.9% YTD.

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