North Dakota Concrete Workers Comp Rates (2026)
North Dakota employers buy concrete workers comp from the state fund. The 2026 base rate for class 5205 (Concrete Work) is $2.10 per $100 of payroll, before your experience modifier.
The state fund sets one base rate per class; your experience modifier moves it up or down. Source.
North Dakota class code for concrete
- 5205: Concrete Work
Monopolistic state fund with its own manual of about 140 rate classes; several numbers echo NCCI codes but scopes are broader (for example 5183 covers plumbing, HVAC and sheet metal together, and roofing is 5545 hot process or 5410 cold process).
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 Dakota
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 1,190 cement masons and concrete finishers on payrolls in North Dakota (May 2025), the 37th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $27.74 an hour, in line with the US median of $27.41.
This trade is a bigger part of the North Dakota job market than it is nationally: cement masons and concrete finishers hold 2.1 times their national share of jobs there.
At the North Dakota state fund's 2026 base rate of $2.10 per $100 of payroll for class 5205, comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.58 for every hour worked, or $1,212 a year full time. A 4-person crew comes to roughly $4,847 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. North Dakota pay runs from $22.36 an hour at the 10th percentile to $34.35 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.47 an hour on a new hire and $0.72 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in North Dakota
- Coverage required: Any employee (coverage in force before work begins)
- Owners and sole proprietors: Not required to cover self; optional personal coverage through WSI
- State fund: Monopolistic; coverage only from Workforce Safety & Insurance (WSI), no private carriers or self-insurance
- Waiting period: 5 days
- Penalty for going without: Up to $10,000 plus $100 per day, cease-and-desist orders, and liability for claim costs during the lapse
North Dakota is one of only four monopolistic states, and it allows neither private carriers nor self-insurance, only WSI.
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.