Salary expenses from insurance companies increased by 15% for the 9th month of 2024

2024-12-10 07:19:00, Ekonomi CNA

Salary expenses from insurance companies increased by 15% for the 9th month of

Pressures for salary increases in the financial sector continue to be present during 2024.

According to the statistics of the Financial Supervision Authority (AMF), salary expenses from Non-Life insurance companies for the 9-month period reached 964 million ALL, an increase of 15% compared to a year ago.

In total, personnel expenses (including insurance contributions, training, bonuses, etc.) touched the value of ALL 1.18 billion, increasing by 15.6% compared to the same period of the previous year.

A similar increase in salary expenses, by 13.8%, was also noted in the smaller Life insurance market.

Although there are no data available on the progress of the number of employees, according to company managers, the main effect on the increase in salary expenses was given by their increase.

In the post-pandemic period, Albanian businesses faced high pressure to increase wages, due to rapid economic recovery, growing emigration among young people and high levels of staff turnover. This pressure was increased even more by the high levels of inflation that hit the economy after 2022. The financial sector has not escaped this trend either.

In addition to insurance, a significant increase in personnel expenses is also being recorded in the banking sector. According to data from the Bank of Albania, personnel expenses for the 9th month of 2024 reached more than ALL 12.8 billion, an increase of 14% compared to the same period last year and at the highest level ever recorded for this period of the year.

The data of the Albanian Association of Banks showed that at the end of September, banks reported 7,089 employees, an increase of 2.6% compared to the same period a year ago.

The increase in the number of employees has influenced the increase in personnel expenses, but the biggest effect on their growth is still given by the increase in salaries.

Last year, the banking sector also began to face increasing pressure from the labor market, especially in low and middle level positions. The large movements of the staff in these positions have forced them to revise the salaries upwards.

According to INSTAT data, for quarter II 2024, the average salary in the financial sector reached the record level of more than 166 thousand ALL per month, with an annual increase of 11.4%.

Although the financial sector has the highest average salary in the Albanian economy, in recent years the pressures for salary increases have been clear in this segment as well./ Monitor Magazine