Higher staff departure rates due to the pandemic and increased costs connected to sourcing talent from the EU a year on from Brexit are creating an extremely competitive labour market for insurers.
Several insurers have told Health & Protection they are facing significant hurdles and competition to find the right people.
Gavin Withers, UK head of talent acquisition at Canada Life, revealed that 2021’s war for talent was extremely competitive.
“This was driven by a vast number of employers recruiting in earnest across the market after a cautious approach to recruiting in 2020 when Covid first hit,” Withers explained.
“As a result, we have seen a higher rate of attrition in 2021 than in prior years. This isn’t just a Canada Life challenge, it’s a global trend – in the US they are calling it the great resignation.”
Consequently, Canada Life launched a number of international recruitment campaigns last year as it had to go further afield to source strong talent – particularly for key skills and senior roles.
“The impact that Brexit had is that Europe would normally be our next port of call for talent scouting,” he added.
“Given that there is no longer free movement of talent in the region, there is additional cost and rigour and we need to sponsor European candidates to join now.
“This does also present an opportunity, as when we do launch international campaigns, we can go global as opposed to just looking into Europe in the first instance.”
A spokesperson for Aegon agreed the job market is currently very competitive with a number of contributing factors to this.
“Brexit is one of these factors, but our experience shows this is more driven by pent up demand from the early part of the pandemic,” the insurer said.
“The pandemic has also prompted people across many sectors to review their career and priorities. We’ve taken steps to offer career opportunities which are attractive and align with the flexibility of modern day life.”
A Legal & General spokesperson added: “We are seeing a competitive labour market including in specific skillsets like technology and digital.
“There are however many causes and the specific impact of Brexit, as opposed to the pandemic or broader cost of living issues, is hard to identify.”