A deepening labor shortage, widening technology skills gaps and mounting employee financial insecurity have emerged as the three most pressing people risks confronting US organizations, according to a new report from Marsh.
The 2026 People Risk report draws on responses from more than 1,000 HR and risk professionals across the United States. It identifies the workforce-related factors most likely to amplify or mitigate enterprise risk.
The US findings form part of a wider global study in which Marsh identified inadequate cyber threat literacy as the leading worldwide concern. The firm also reported that 40% of HR and risk professionals globally fear their organizations are rolling out AI without sufficient training, an anxiety echoed across the American results.
Susan Potter (pictured above), Mercer's US and Canada president, said firms that actively address people risks tend to secure a stronger market position.
"Our People Risk research underscores that organizational resilience also hinges on the extent companies invest in their people — by building skills, supporting health and financial well-being, and redesigning work to better incorporate AI and automation," she said.
Among organizations that successfully mitigated people risks, 42% reported higher workforce productivity and efficiency, while 35% cited faster progress on strategic initiatives, including AI adoption.
Labor shortage emerged as the leading concern. Tauseef Rahman, Mercer's US workforce rewards solutions lead, said the issue extends beyond hiring, noting that "many organizations are grappling with depleted workforces, escalating labor costs, and a talent supply that is difficult to navigate."
The strain weighs especially heavily on insurance, which has been wrestling with a demographic squeeze for years. Earlier projections from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics suggested the sector could shed close to 400,000 workers by 2026 as retirements accelerate, while previous analysis from Patra estimated that roughly half of insurance personnel will exit within 15 years.
Broader labor data points to a market in flux. The Q1 2026 Insurance Labor Market Study by The Jacobson Group and Aon's Strategy and Technology Group found that job openings in finance and insurance fell to their lowest monthly level in a decade by December 2025, dropping from an annual average of 281,000 to roughly 138,000 in a single month.
The same study found involuntary turnover across the insurance industry rose 0.6 percentage points year over year, while P/C industry headcount grew only 0.81% from January 2025 to January 2026, well below the anticipated 1.42%. Automation requiring fewer staff was the most common reason cited by firms reducing headcount.
Related pressures include employee burnout, flagged by 36% of respondents, and rising labor costs tied to competition for talent, cited by 35%. On retention and engagement, 34% pointed to limited career advancement opportunities as the leading concern.
Technology skills shortages ranked second, with gaps in cybersecurity and AI talent constraining the deployment of critical systems. While AI investment continues, 38% of respondents said their organizations are adopting the technology without sufficient training, and another 38% said limited AI knowledge within HR is restricting transformation efforts.
Employee financial insecurity placed third, with rising living costs and debt linked to weaker retention, lower engagement and potential misconduct. More than half of respondents, at 57%, expect health and benefits costs to rise.
