Ohio Concrete Workers Comp Rates 2026: Class Code, Cost

Concrete workers comp in Ohio 2026: the state's class code, rate, cost per worker from BLS wages, and neighboring states.

Ohio Concrete Workers Comp Rates (2026)

Ohio employers buy concrete workers comp from the state fund. The 2026 base rate for class 5213 (Concrete Construction NOC) is $2.18 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.

Ohio class codes for concrete

  • 5221: Concrete or Cement Work - Floors, Driveways, Yards or Sidewalks and Drivers
  • 5213: Concrete Construction NOC

Monopolistic state fund that uses NCCI manual classification numbers but sets its own base rates (about 500 classes) and does not use NCCI loss costs; some NCCI or state-specific codes (e.g. 5436, 5651) are not in Ohio's table.

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 Ohio

The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 6,060 cement masons and concrete finishers on payrolls in Ohio (May 2025), the 8th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $30.28 an hour, 10% above the US median of $27.41.

Cement masons and concrete finishers make up about the same share of Ohio jobs as they do nationally (location quotient 0.82).

At the Ohio state fund's 2026 base rate of $2.18 per $100 of payroll for class 5213, comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.66 for every hour worked, or $1,374 a year full time. A 4-person crew comes to roughly $5,496 a year in premium before any experience mod.

Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Ohio pay runs from $21.22 an hour at the 10th percentile to $39.10 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.46 an hour on a new hire and $0.85 on a senior hand.

Workers comp requirements in Ohio

  • Coverage required: 1 employee
  • Owners and sole proprietors: Owners with no employees may elect self-coverage; mandatory once any employee is hired
  • State fund: Monopolistic; coverage only from the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC)
  • Waiting period: 7 days; retroactive to day one if disability exceeds 14 days
  • Penalty for going without: Liable for all claim costs during a lapse, BWC penalties, and personal officer liability

Ohio is one of four monopolistic states and offers state-run group-rating and rebate programs unavailable in private-market states.

Ohio vs neighboring states

Among its neighbors, West Virginia is the cheapest for concrete comp at $1.74 and Pennsylvania the most expensive at $4.26 per $100 of payroll.

If your crews cross into Indiana or Kentucky or Michigan or Pennsylvania or West Virginia, your Ohio state-fund coverage does not follow them. Buy a private policy for the out-of-state work, with Ohio excluded from it.

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.

Related Ohio Concrete pages