Pennsylvania Electrical Workers Comp Rates (2026)
The published Pennsylvania loss cost for electrical workers comp, class 0661 (Electrical Wiring), is $1.358 per $100 of payroll (effective April 1, 2026). Carriers multiply it by their own filed multiplier, so a typical premium is about $2.04.
A loss cost covers expected claims only. Each carrier files its own multiplier for expenses; in the states that publish the full list, the median is about 1.5, which is what the typical premium here uses. Your quote can be lower or higher. Source.
Pennsylvania class code for electrical
- 0661: Electrical Wiring
Pennsylvania uses its own independent classification system of about 330 classes with PCRB code numbers (written as 3-digit codes or with a leading zero, e.g. 659 or 0659) that do not map one-to-one to NCCI codes.
Electrical work carries shock, arc flash and fall hazards. Outside power line construction is a separate class, 7538.
What comp costs per electrician in Pennsylvania
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 22,730 electricians on payrolls in Pennsylvania (May 2025), the 9th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $32.50 an hour, 7% above the US median of $30.38.
Electricians make up about the same share of Pennsylvania jobs as they do nationally (location quotient 0.77).
At a typical Pennsylvania premium of about $2.04 per $100 of payroll (the published loss cost of $1.36 for class 0661 times a 1.5 carrier multiplier), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.66 for every hour worked, or $1,379 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $2,758 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Pennsylvania pay runs from $21.92 an hour at the 10th percentile to $58.95 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.45 an hour on a new hire and $1.20 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Pennsylvania
- Coverage required: 1 employee
- Owners and sole proprietors: A sole proprietor with no employees is exempt; required once any employee is hired
- State fund: Competitive state fund (State Workers' Insurance Fund, SWIF)
- Waiting period: 7 days; retroactive to day one if disability lasts more than 14 days
- Penalty for going without: Failure to insure is a misdemeanor per day (up to $2,500); intentional failure is a felony (up to $15,000)
Pennsylvania sets rates through the independent PCRB (not NCCI) and runs its own competitive state fund, SWIF.
Pennsylvania vs neighboring states
- Delaware: about $1.86 per $100 of payroll
- New Jersey: about $3.84 per $100 of payroll
- New York: about $4.27 per $100 of payroll
- Ohio: about $1.09 per $100 of payroll
- West Virginia: about $0.85 per $100 of payroll
Among its neighbors, West Virginia is the cheapest for electrical comp at $0.85 and New York the most expensive at $4.27 per $100 of payroll.
Working across the line into Ohio needs separate coverage from that state's fund. A private policy's other-states coverage (item 3.C) does not reach monopolistic states.
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.