Historically high workloads have Canada’s property and casualty insurance professionals stressed out, even if they don’t want to say so.

After four major natural catastrophes hit Canada in one month during the summer, P&C insurance professionals are reporting high levels of stress, thanks largely to a labour shortage and a peak period of crushing workloads.

But many don’t have time to deal with it, nor do they want to talk about it. As one industry professional shares in a recent Canadian Underwriter survey on mental health, “The stigma associated with mental health and stress is still very real in the workplace.”

Overall, 836 P&C insurance industry professionals answered CU’s inaugural 2024 Mental Health Survey, which was fielded in August 2024 – right around the time four separate NatCats resulted in more than 230,000 claims for the industry over a four-week period. The survey was made possible by Allstate Canada.

Not surprisingly, industry professionals report high stress levels, and steep workloads consistently get the blame.

“Workload is a huge issue,” one respondent tells the CU survey. “And if not addressed, when you come back [from time off], the stress is likely to come back.”

When asked to rate their current mental health on a scale of 1-10, with 1 being ‘No concerns at all,’ and 10 being ‘Unable to function,’ 44% of respondents rate their mental health between 6 and 8.

A survey question specifically about stress levels finds more than 300 industry professionals report feeling either ‘highly stressed’ (35%) or ‘acute stress’ (3%).

 

Top workplace stressor

Sixty-one per cent of those surveyed cite ‘heavy workload’ as a workplace stressor.

And ‘lack of staff’ repeatedly came up in the survey’s written commentary as a reason for high stress levels. Not surprising, given Canada’s P&C industry is dealing with a well-documented labour shortage.

Demographic research published by the Insurance Institute of Canada (IIC) shows roughly 22% of the current P&C industry workforce is eligible to retire between 2021 and 2026. And the industry’s having a hard time replacing those who depart.

Industry HR professionals in the IIC’s research cite the lack of qualified external candidates and ‘The Great Resignation’ during the pandemic as the two top reasons for the labour shortage. Actuaries, commercial brokers and adjusters top the list of skillsets most in need of recruitment, HR professionals told the IIC’s researchers.

For many answering CU’s survey, stressors due to workload and management expectations go hand-in-hand. Forty-five per cent identified ‘management demands’ as a key issue.

“I think employers are putting too much pressure to continuously do more, no matter how much you exceed [their expectations],” says one survey respondent. “The work volumes are too high for most employees, no matter the level they are at, as employers do not want to spend money on hiring.”

The result is signs of mental health distress, the survey shows.

 

This article is excerpted from one appearing in the October-November 2024 print edition of Canadian Underwriter. Feature image courtesy of iStock.com/sturti