Insurance Carriers and Related Activities: NAICS 524

About the Insurance Carriers and Related Activities subsector

The insurance carriers and related activities subsector is part of the finance and insurance sector.

The insurance carriers and related activities subsector consists of these industry groups:

• Insurance Carriers: NAICS 5241
• Agencies, Brokerages, and Other Insurance Related Activities: NAICS 5242

Workforce Statistics

This section provides information relating to employment and unemployment in insurance carriers and related activities. While most data are obtained from employer or establishment surveys, information on industry unemployment comes from a national survey of households. The following tables present an overview of the industry including the number of jobs, the unemployment rate of those previously employed in the industry, union membership and representation, mass layoffs, data for occupations common to the industry, and projections of occupational employment change.

Employment, Unemployment, and Layoffs

Data series	Back data	Dec. 2008	Jan. 2009	Feb. 2009	Mar. 2009
Employment (in thousands)
Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted)		2,292.0	2,287.4	(P) 2,281.1	(P) 2,279.0
Employment, nonsupervisory workers		1,851.3	1,841.3	(P) 1,838.7
Unemployment
Unemployment rate		3.0%	3.4%	3.9%	5.0%
Layoffs
Mass layoff events		6	26	16	12
Initial claimants for unemployment benefits		464	2,137	1,273	1,043
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics, Current Population Survey, Mass Layoff Statistics)

Union Membership and Representation

Data series	Back data	2005	2006	2007	2008
Union membership and representation
Members of unions (percent of wage and salary workers)		2.0%	1.8%	2.0%	1.9%
Represented by unions (percent of wage and salary workers)		2.5%	2.3%	2.4%	2.4%

(Source: Current Population Survey)

Extended Mass Layoffs

Data series	Back data	1st quarter 2008	2nd quarter 2008	3rd quarter 2008	4th quarter 2008
Extended mass layoff events		18	21	(P) 33	(P) 18
Separations		2,947	4,646	(P) 6,264	(P) 2,265
Initial claimants		3,150	4,776	(P) 6,357	(P) 2,503
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Mass Layoff Statistics)

Employment by Occupation

Data series	Employment, 2008
Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators	204,500
First-line supervisors/managers of office and administrative support workers	55,190
Insurance claims and policy processing clerks	210,820
Insurance sales agents	312,110
Insurance underwriters	86,440

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Projections

For projected (future) employment estimates, see the National Employment Matrix, which includes employment estimates by industry and occupation for insurance carriers and related activities.

(Source: Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections)

Earnings and Hours

This section presents data on employee earnings and weekly hours. The latest industry averages of hourly earnings and weekly hours for production or nonsupervisory employees, as well as weekly earnings by union membership status, are shown. In addition, recent hourly and annual earnings are shown for occupations commonly found in insurance carriers and related activities. This section also contains information on the average cost of benefits paid by employers, as well as recent rates of change in wages and total compensation.

Earnings and Hours of Production Workers

Data series	Back data	Nov. 2008	Dec. 2008	Jan. 2009	Feb. 2009
Average hourly earnings		$23.23	$23.16	$23.15	(P) $23.33
Average weekly hours		38.3	37.6	37.8	(P) 38.3
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Union Membership and Representation

Data series	Back data	Median weekly earnings
		2005	2006	2007	2008
Union membership and representation
Full-time workers		$764	$767	$795	$846
Members of unions		$730	$660	$727	$745
Represented by unions		$729	$674	$735	$769
Nonunion		$766	$769	$799	$849

(Source: Current Population Survey)

Earnings by Occupation

Data series	Wages, 2008
	Hourly		Annual
	Median	Mean	Median	Mean
Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators	$26.12	$27.25	$54,330	$56,690
First-line supervisors/managers of office and administrative support workers	$25.49	$27.05	$53,010	$56,260
Insurance claims and policy processing clerks	$15.95	$16.77	$33,180	$34,880
Insurance sales agents	$21.89	$29.12	$45,520	$60,560
Insurance underwriters	$27.28	$30.14	$56,740	$62,680

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Employer Compensation Costs

Data series	Back data	2nd quarter 2008	3rd quarter 2008	4th quarter 2008	1st quarter 2009
12-month percent change
Total compensation		2.8%	2.2%	2.4%	1.6%
Wages and salaries		2.6%	1.7%	2.3%	1.4%

(Source: Compensation Cost Trends)

Data series	Back data	4th quarter 2008
		Compensation component ($ per hour worked)	Percent of total compensation
Compensation costs
Total compensation		37.80	100.0
Wages and salaries		25.78	68.2
Total benefits		12.02	31.8
Insurance		3.22	8.5
Retirement		1.78	4.7

(Source: Compensation Cost Trends)

Work-related Fatalities, Injuries, and Illnesses

This section presents data for the industry on the number of workplace fatalities and the rates of workplace injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in insurance carriers and related activities. An injury or illness is considered to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition.

Data series	2004	2005	2006	2007
Fatalities
Number of fatalities	14	11	14	16
Rate of injury and illness cases per 100 full-time workers
Total recordable cases	1.1	1.2	1.0	1.1
Cases involving days away from work, job restriction, or transfer	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.4
Cases involving days away from work	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3
Cases involving days of job transfer or restriction	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1

(Source: Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities)

Prices

This section provides industry-specific pricing information. The producer price index measures the percentage change in prices that domestic producers receive for goods and services. The prices included in the producer price index are from the first commercial transaction.

Data series	Back data	Dec. 2008	Jan. 2009	Feb. 2009	Mar. 2009
Producer price index		(P) 110.8	(P) 111.5	(P) 111.5	(P) 112.2
Percent change from previous month		(P) -0.3%	(P) 0.6%	(P) 0.0%	(P) 0.6%
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Producer Price Indexes)

Workplace Trends

This section presents data on the number of establishments in insurance carriers and related activities.

Establishments

Data series	Back data	4th quarter 2007	1st quarter 2008	2nd quarter 2008	3rd quarter 2008
Number of establishments
Private industry		188,046	(P) 185,658	(P) 185,696	(P) 186,149
Local government		52	(P) 51	(P) 51	(P) 52
State government		21	(P) 21	(P) 21	(P) 22
Federal government		136	(P) 137	(P) 138	(P) 138
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)

Other BLS Resources

Career Guide to Industries

See insurance in the Career Guide to Industries.

 

Data extracted on: May 01, 2009