District of Columbia Electrical Workers Comp Rates (2026)
District of Columbia does not publish its electrical class figures online. Across the 26 states that do, the median typical premium is about $1.90 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 electrical
- 5190: Electrical Wiring - Within Buildings
- 7538 (Electric Light or Power Line Construction & Drivers)
Electrical work carries shock, arc flash and fall hazards. Outside power line construction is a separate class, 7538.
What comp costs per electrician in District of Columbia
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 2,440 electricians on payrolls in District of Columbia (May 2025), the 47th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $37.97 an hour, 25% above the US median of $30.38.
This trade is a smaller part of the District of Columbia job market than it is nationally: electricians hold 0.71 times their national share of jobs there.
At the US median of $1.90 per $100 of payroll (District of Columbia does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.72 for every hour worked, or $1,501 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $3,001 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 $24.97 an hour at the 10th percentile to $60.48 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.47 an hour on a new hire and $1.15 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 electrical comp bill
- Electrical is one of the cheaper construction classes, so overstated payroll often costs more than the rate itself. Estimate payroll honestly at renewal and true it up at audit.
- Ladder falls and shocks are the typical claims. Lockout and tagout procedures that are actually followed are what keep the experience mod under 1.0.
- Low-voltage, alarm, and solar work can carry different class codes in some states. Ask your agent before you add those lines to the business.
- Office staff and estimators who stay out of the field can usually be rated as clerical. Keep their hours off the field timesheets.