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The U.S. insurance industry lost 3,400 jobs in October, the 12th consecutive month of losses, according to seasonally adjusted data released Nov. 6 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The overall national unemployment rate topped 10% for the highest rate since April 1983.
Industry payrolls were 2.244 million in October, down from a seasonally adjusted 2.247 million in September. The September data was revised downward from the 2.249 million jobs reported last month, changing September's job losses to 3,000. In the past year, the industry has lost 67,100 jobs, a drop of 2.9%, compared with a 4.0% fall for nonfarm payrolls, according to current BLS data.
Total nonfarm payrolls were down by 190,000 in October, bringing the total number of jobs lost since the start of the recession in December 2007 to 7.3 million. The U.S. unemployment rate rose from 9.8% to 10.2%. Monthly job losses averaged 188,000 over the previous three months, with reported losses smaller and less widespread than last fall and winter.
Total insurance industry payrolls are reported on a seasonably adjusted basis, along with the current month's nonfarm payrolls, on a monthly basis. Separately, data by industry segment "” broken out by various insurance carrier and noncarrier categories "” are available only on an unadjusted basis for the prior month.
Based on just-released September 2009 data, health insurers continued to be the only sector seeing year-to-year job growth. Health insurer payrolls rose 2.3%, to 461,400.
Every other insurance sector saw job declines from September 2008 to September 2009. Title insurers plunged 13.0% to 67,500 jobs. Job losses also were seen among claims adjusters, down 12.3% to 46,400 jobs; third-party administrators, down 6.5% to 121,800; property/casualty insurers, down 3.2% to 473,200; life insurers, down 2.9% to 345,400; agents and brokers, down 2.8% to 649,100; reinsurers, down 1.8% to 28,000; and "other" sectors, down 2.1% to 51,200.
Average weekly earnings for the industry's nonsupervisory positions fell in three industry categories from September 2008 to September 2009. Title insurance employees' earnings dropped 2.3% to $823.15. Wages for claims adjusters and third-party administrators each fell 1.3%, to $870.87 and $749.05, respectively.
Life insurance employees saw the largest rise in earnings, 5.7%, to $989.23. Other increases were seen in agents and brokers, 2.3% to $750.00; health insurance, up 1.8% to $917.58; property/casualty, up 1.4% to $996.10; reinsurance, up 1.1% to $813.60; and "other," up 0.82% to $811.06.
(By Sean P. Carr, Washington Correspondent: sean.carr@ambest.com)
This is a news service of Thomson Business Intelligence Service ©2006. This content is for your personal use only, subject to Terms and Conditions. No redistribution allowed.
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