Iowa Electrical Workers Comp Rates (2026)
The published Iowa rate for electrical workers comp, class 5190 (Electrical Wiring Within Buildings and Drivers), is $1.73 per $100 of payroll (effective January 1, 2026). Your experience modifier and any carrier discounts adjust it.
This is the published manual rate, so it already includes carrier expenses. Source.
Iowa 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 Iowa
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 10,310 electricians on payrolls in Iowa (May 2025), the 28th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $29.26 an hour, 4% below the US median of $30.38.
This trade is a bigger part of the Iowa job market than it is nationally: electricians hold 1.4 times their national share of jobs there.
At the published Iowa rate of $1.73 per $100 of payroll for class 5190, comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.51 for every hour worked, or $1,053 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $2,106 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Iowa pay runs from $19.12 an hour at the 10th percentile to $43.02 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.33 an hour on a new hire and $0.74 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Iowa
- Coverage required: 1 employee; no payroll or headcount floor
- Owners and sole proprietors: A full-time sole proprietor or partner is auto-excluded; may decline in writing or elect in
- State fund: Private market (no state fund)
- Waiting period: 3 days; retroactive if disability continues more than 14 days
- Penalty for going without: An uninsured employer loses tort immunity and can be sued for uncapped civil damages
Iowa has no small-employer exemption at all, requiring coverage from the first employee with no payroll floor.
Iowa vs neighboring states
Iowa has the lowest electrical comp rate in its region; every neighboring state charges more 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 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.