District of Columbia Drywall Workers Comp Rates (2026)
District of Columbia does not publish its drywall class figures online. Across the 25 states that do, the median typical premium is about $4.08 per $100 of payroll. Ask a carrier or the state's rating bureau for the current District of Columbia figure.
No official District of Columbia figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.
District of Columbia class code for drywall
- 5445: Wallboard Installation - Within Buildings & Drivers
- 5480 (Plastering NOC & Drivers)
- 5491 (Paperhanging & Drivers)
Drywall work carries lifting injuries from heavy sheets, dust exposure, and ladder and scaffold falls on high walls and ceilings.
What comp costs per drywall installer in District of Columbia
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 2,090 construction laborers on payrolls in District of Columbia (May 2025), the 49th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $24.05 an hour, 6% above the US median of $22.66.
This trade is a smaller part of the District of Columbia job market than it is nationally: construction laborers hold 0.42 times their national share of jobs there.
At the US median of $4.08 per $100 of payroll (District of Columbia does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.98 for every hour worked, or $2,041 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $6,123 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. District of Columbia pay runs from $17.88 an hour at the 10th percentile to $34.77 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.73 an hour on a new hire and $1.42 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in District of Columbia
- Coverage required: 1 employee
- Owners and sole proprietors: Excluded by default; may elect in
- State fund: Private market (no state fund)
- Waiting period: 3 days; retroactive only if disability continues more than 14 days
The District has an unusually long 14-day threshold before the waiting period becomes retroactively payable.
What moves a drywall comp bill
- Drywall hangers and tapers usually share one class. Stilt and scaffold falls and lifting injuries are the claims to manage.
- Piece-rate pay is common in drywall. Comp is still charged on the full amount paid, so piece-rate crews do not lower premium.
- Drywall subs without their own coverage are the largest audit risk in this trade. Collect certificates before the first board goes up.
- If you also frame or do acoustic ceilings, those can be separate classes. Record payroll for each kind of work.