South Dakota Concrete Workers Comp Rates (2026)

South Dakota does not publish its concrete class figures online. Across the 26 states that do, the median typical premium is about $3.84 per $100 of payroll. Ask a carrier or the state's rating bureau for the current South Dakota figure.

No official South Dakota figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.

South Dakota 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 South Dakota

The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 2,550 cement masons and concrete finishers on payrolls in South Dakota (May 2025), the 25th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $22.67 an hour, 17% below the US median of $27.41.

This trade is a bigger part of the South Dakota job market than it is nationally: cement masons and concrete finishers hold 4.2 times their national share of jobs there.

At the US median of $3.84 per $100 of payroll (South Dakota does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.87 for every hour worked, or $1,811 a year full time. A 4-person crew comes to roughly $7,243 a year in premium before any experience mod.

Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. South Dakota pay runs from $17.61 an hour at the 10th percentile to $30.47 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.68 an hour on a new hire and $1.17 on a senior hand.

Workers comp requirements in South Dakota

Coverage required: Not mandatory at any headcount (elective for all employers)
Owners and sole proprietors: Excluded; may elect coverage
State fund: Private market (no state fund)
Waiting period: 7 consecutive days; benefits then compute from the injury date
Penalty for going without: No statutory fine, but an uninsured employer loses exclusive remedy and faces unlimited civil liability

South Dakota is one of only two states (with Texas) where workers comp is not legally mandatory.

South Dakota vs neighboring states

Iowa: about $5.17 per $100 of payroll
North Dakota: about $2.10 per $100 of payroll
Wyoming: about $2.39 per $100 of payroll

South Dakota does not publish its figure, so the first row is the US median. Among neighbors that publish, North Dakota is the cheapest for concrete comp at about $2.10 and Iowa the most expensive at about $5.17 per $100 of payroll.

Working across the line into North Dakota or Wyoming needs separate coverage from that state's fund. A private policy's other-states coverage (item 3.C) does not reach monopolistic states.

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.