Fewer insurance companies plan to use temporary staff in the first half of 2016, according to the semi-annual US Insurance Labor Outlook Study conducted by The Jacobson Group and Ward Group. The survey found 5% of companies plan to increase their use versus 9% reporting in the same survey six months ago.

However, 66.3% of companies plan to increase staff during the next 12 months, driven by 68% in the life/health category. These are the highest percentages expected in the history of the survey.

“The staffing prediction was the highest anticipated rate in the seven-year history of our survey,” said Gregory Jacobson, co-chief executive officer of Jacobson. “It is clear that the insurance industry is focused on building staff, resulting in an increasingly competitive labor market.”

With the highest percentage of surveyed companies indicating an increase in hiring and continued low unemployment in the insurance industry, a difficult recruiting climate will persist, according to the report. Technology, actuarial and analytic positions are the most difficult to fill.

Technology, claims and underwriter roles are expected to grow the greatest during the next 12 months, the same results from the prior two surveys.