North Dakota Drywall Workers Comp Rates (2026)
North Dakota employers buy drywall workers comp from the state fund. The 2026 base rate for class 5345 (Plastering - Stucco - Drywall) is $2.70 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 drywall
- 5345: Plastering - Stucco - Drywall
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).
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 North Dakota
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 130 drywall and ceiling tile installers on payrolls in North Dakota (May 2025), the 46th largest workforce of the 49 states with published figures. The median wage is $21.69 an hour, 23% below the US median of $28.33.
This trade is a smaller part of the North Dakota job market than it is nationally: drywall and ceiling tile installers hold 0.55 times their national share of jobs there.
At the North Dakota state fund's 2026 base rate of $2.70 per $100 of payroll for class 5345, comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.59 for every hour worked, or $1,218 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $3,654 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 $17.95 an hour at the 10th percentile to $27.65 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.48 an hour on a new hire and $0.75 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 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.