Tennessee Drywall Workers Comp Rates (2026)
Tennessee 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 Tennessee figure.
No official Tennessee figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.
Tennessee 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 Tennessee
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 1,150 drywall and ceiling tile installers on payrolls in Tennessee (May 2025), the 17th largest workforce of the 49 states with published figures. The median wage is $22.84 an hour, 19% below the US median of $28.33.
This trade is a smaller part of the Tennessee job market than it is nationally: drywall and ceiling tile installers hold 0.65 times their national share of jobs there.
At the US median of $4.08 per $100 of payroll (Tennessee does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.93 for every hour worked, or $1,938 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $5,815 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Tennessee pay runs from $17.90 an hour at the 10th percentile to $31.56 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.73 an hour on a new hire and $1.29 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Tennessee
- Coverage required: 5+ employees; 1 for construction
- Owners and sole proprietors: Construction owners may exempt themselves via the state registry; employees must be covered
- State fund: Private market (no state fund)
- Waiting period: 7 days; retroactive to day one if disability lasts more than 14 days
- Penalty for going without: Civil penalties $50-$10,000 or 1.5x the avoided premium; an injury while uninsured escalates to a misdemeanor
Tennessee runs an Uninsured Employers Fund, financed by penalties, that pays workers injured by illegally uninsured employers.
Tennessee vs neighboring states
- Alabama: about $3.67 per $100 of payroll
- Georgia: about $10.98 per $100 of payroll
- Missouri: about $4.90 per $100 of payroll
- North Carolina: about $5.62 per $100 of payroll
Tennessee does not publish its figure, so the first row is the US median. Among neighbors that publish, Alabama is the cheapest for drywall comp at about $3.67 and Georgia the most expensive at about $10.98 per $100 of payroll.
If your crews work across the line, list those states under item 3.A or 3.C of your policy before the job starts. Rates follow the state where the work is done, not where your office is.
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.