Ohio Drywall Workers Comp Rates (2026)
Ohio employers buy drywall workers comp from the state fund. The 2026 base rate for class 5445 (Wallboard, Sheetrock, Drywall, Plasterboard or Cement Board Installation - Within Buildings and Drivers) is $2.05 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 code for drywall
- 5445: Wallboard, Sheetrock, Drywall, Plasterboard or Cement Board Installation - Within Buildings and Drivers
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.
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 Ohio
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 1,680 drywall and ceiling tile installers on payrolls in Ohio (May 2025), the 11th largest workforce of the 49 states with published figures. The median wage is $29.53 an hour, 4% above the US median of $28.33.
This trade is a smaller part of the Ohio job market than it is nationally: drywall and ceiling tile installers hold 0.57 times their national share of jobs there.
At the Ohio state fund's 2026 base rate of $2.05 per $100 of payroll for class 5445, comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.61 for every hour worked, or $1,259 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $3,778 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Ohio pay runs from $20.39 an hour at the 10th percentile to $35.77 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.42 an hour on a new hire and $0.73 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
- Indiana: about $1.72 per $100 of payroll
- Michigan: about $2.31 per $100 of payroll
- Pennsylvania: about $4.39 per $100 of payroll
- West Virginia: about $1.78 per $100 of payroll
Among its neighbors, Indiana is the cheapest for drywall comp at $1.72 and Pennsylvania the most expensive at $4.39 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 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.