Study targeting young insurance workers finds job commitment

Study among young insurance workers finds job commitment.

By Ayo Mseka

A recent study among 1,000 young insurance professionals found that 92% see themselves remaining at their current insurance job for the next year, 78% expect to remain in insurance at their next job, and 61% want to be in insurance for the next 20 years.

The study was conducted by Breeze among 1,000 actively employed adult Americans with college degrees between the ages of 22 and 30. The survey's findings contained some good news for those in the insurance industry worried about hiring and retaining workers, especially in light of the "great resignation" and "great retirement."

Other survey findings include:

Among non-insurance professionals, 65% are still open to working in insurance, and 57% from this group would rather work at a traditional insurance company instead of at a newer insurtech.
Compared to other industries, young insurance professionals feel just as good (sometimes better) about their career choice.
Insurance professionals gave their current jobs higher ratings for “opportunity” and “sexiness,” compared to non-insurance professionals. Both groups gave equal ratings for “satisfaction” and “stability.”

Those surveyed were segmented into two groups: those who currently work in insurance and everybody else. Both groups were asked the same set of four questions. On a scale from 1 (least) to 10 (most), they were asked to rate their current job for satisfaction, stability, opportunity, and sexiness.

According to the study, young insurance employees are just as satisfied and just as stable as their counterparts in other industries. And they're actually more bullish about their growth opportunities in insurance.

Insurance workers satisfied, stable

Perhaps what is the most surprising, the report said, is that insurance received a higher score for sexiness, compared to the other aggregated industries. Traditionally seen as a mundane necessity, insurance has rarely been mistaken as "sexy.”

Among the poll participants who are employed by the insurance industry, 55% said working in insurance was what they wanted to do. The other 45% took an insurance job for another reason, such as for a higher salary.

A sweeping 92% of insurance professionals see themselves remaining at their current job for at least the next year, and 78% from this group expect they will remain in insurance after their current job, while 22% do not.

Nearly two-thirds of young, college-educated insurance professionals want their career to be in the insurance industry for the next two decades, according to the survey. And young employees see their job in insurance as a career, not just as a way to pay the bills.

Pay increase is key

Among non-insurance professionals, 75% would consider a job offer from an insurance company if the offer came with a 10% pay increase, compared to their current job. Twenty-five percent would not.

The overarching theme from this report's data is that insurance employers should not be too worried about the insurance talent gap, the study said. Most college graduates between the ages of 22 and 30 already enjoy their careers in the insurance industry, still want to work in the insurance industry, or could be lured to the insurance industry.

Data from the report is from a survey created and commissioned by Breeze and conducted online by survey platform, Pollfish. In total, 1,000 college-graduated and actively-employed Americans between the ages of 22 and 30 were surveyed. The appropriate respondents were found via Pollfish’s age, education, and occupation- filtering features. The survey was conducted between September 14-16, 2022.

Ayo Mseka has more than 30 years of experience reporting on the financial services industry. She formerly served as editor-in-chief of NAIFA’s Advisor Today magazine. Contact her at [email protected].