Rhode Island Electrical Workers Comp Rates (2026)
Rhode Island 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 Rhode Island figure.
No official Rhode Island figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.
Rhode Island 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 Rhode Island
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 2,420 electricians on payrolls in Rhode Island (May 2025), the 48th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $35.62 an hour, 17% above the US median of $30.38.
Electricians make up about the same share of Rhode Island jobs as they do nationally (location quotient 0.99).
At the US median of $1.90 per $100 of payroll (Rhode Island does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.68 for every hour worked, or $1,408 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $2,815 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Rhode Island pay runs from $20.67 an hour at the 10th percentile to $49.44 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.39 an hour on a new hire and $0.94 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Rhode Island
- Coverage required: 1 employee
- Owners and sole proprietors: Sole proprietors and partners exempt; officers may waive via a state filing
- State fund: Private market (Beacon Mutual is the dominant carrier)
- Waiting period: 3 days; retroactive only if disability exceeds 21 days
- Penalty for going without: Fines up to $1,000 per day; chargeable as a felony; stop-work orders
Rhode Island requires construction independent contractors to file a designation notice annually and separately for each hiring entity.
Rhode Island vs neighboring states
- Connecticut: about $2.75 per $100 of payroll
- Massachusetts: about $1.47 per $100 of payroll
Rhode Island does not publish its figure, so the first row is the US median. Among neighbors that publish, Massachusetts is the cheapest for electrical comp at about $1.47 and Connecticut the most expensive at about $2.75 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.