North Carolina Concrete Workers Comp Rates (2026)
The published North Carolina loss cost for concrete workers comp, class 5213 (Concrete Construction NOC), is $2.305 per $100 of payroll (effective April 1, 2026). Carriers multiply it by their own filed multiplier, so a typical premium is about $3.46.
A loss cost covers expected claims only. Each carrier files its own multiplier for expenses; in the states that publish the full list, the median is about 1.5, which is what the typical premium here uses. Your quote can be lower or higher. Source.
North Carolina class code for concrete
- 5213: Concrete Construction NOC
- 5215 (Concrete Work - Incidental to the Construction of Private Residence)
- 5221 (Concrete or Cement Work - Floors, Driveways, Yards or Sidewalks & Drivers)
Concrete work involves heavy lifting, silica dust from cutting and grinding, skin burns from wet cement, and equipment hazards from mixers, vibrators and pumps.
What comp costs per concrete finisher in North Carolina
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 4,610 cement masons and concrete finishers on payrolls in North Carolina (May 2025), the 13th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $22.49 an hour, 18% below the US median of $27.41.
This trade is a smaller part of the North Carolina job market than it is nationally: cement masons and concrete finishers hold 0.70 times their national share of jobs there.
At a typical North Carolina premium of about $3.46 per $100 of payroll (the published loss cost of $2.31 for class 5213 times a 1.5 carrier multiplier), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.78 for every hour worked, or $1,619 a year full time. A 4-person crew comes to roughly $6,474 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. North Carolina pay runs from $17.83 an hour at the 10th percentile to $28.99 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.62 an hour on a new hire and $1.00 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in North Carolina
- Coverage required: 3+ employees (including construction); 1 if any work involves radiation
- Owners and sole proprietors: Owners, partners, and LLC members not auto-counted as employees; may elect in
- State fund: Private market (NC Rate Bureau residual plan)
- Waiting period: 7 days; retroactive to day one if disability extends beyond 21 days
- Penalty for going without: $1-$100 per employee per day; first offense a misdemeanor, repeats a felony
North Carolina keeps its three-employee threshold even for construction and sets rates through the independent NC Rate Bureau.
North Carolina vs neighboring states
- Georgia: about $5.42 per $100 of payroll
North Carolina has the lowest concrete comp rate in its region; every neighboring state charges more per $100 of payroll.
If your crews work across the line, list those states under item 3.A or 3.C of your policy before the job starts. Rates follow the state where the work is done, not where your office is.
What moves a concrete comp bill
- Concrete classes depend on the work: flatwork and driveways often rate differently from foundations and structural pours. Getting the class right is the first saving.
- Back and crush injuries from forms, rebar, and pump hoses drive claims. A short pre-pour safety check on every job helps your mod over three years.
- Concrete crews often hire short-term labor during the pour season. Every worker you pay counts at audit, so keep clean payroll records for temporary hires.
- Owner-operators who pour alone can often exclude themselves; the rules vary by state, so check before you skip coverage.