Oregon Fencing Workers Comp Rates (2026)
The published Oregon pure premium for fencing workers comp, class 6400 (Fence Erection - Metal or Wood), is $1.968 per $100 of payroll (effective January 1, 2026). Carriers multiply it by their own filed multiplier, so a typical premium is about $2.95.
A pure premium 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.
Oregon class code for fencing
- 6400: Fence Installation and Repair - Metal, Vinyl, Wood or Prefabricated Concrete Panel Fence Installed by Hand & Drivers
- 6217 (Excavation NOC)
- 5403 (Carpentry NOC)
Fence work carries hand tool injury, post-hole digger / auger risks, lifting, and underground utility strike risks. Chain-link work uses cutting tools with finger injury exposure.
What comp costs per fence installer in Oregon
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 12,620 construction laborers on payrolls in Oregon (May 2025), the 30th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $24.45 an hour, 8% above the US median of $22.66.
Construction laborers make up about the same share of Oregon jobs as they do nationally (location quotient 0.91).
At a typical Oregon premium of about $2.95 per $100 of payroll (the published pure premium of $1.97 for class 6400 times a 1.5 carrier multiplier), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.72 for every hour worked, or $1,500 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $4,501 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Oregon pay runs from $18.85 an hour at the 10th percentile to $37.70 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.56 an hour on a new hire and $1.11 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Oregon
- Coverage required: 1 employee
- Owners and sole proprietors: Owners and 10%+ officers excluded by default; personal coverage only if the insurer accepts a written election
- State fund: Competitive state fund (SAIF Corporation)
- Waiting period: 3 days; retroactive if off 14 consecutive days or hospitalized overnight within 14 days
- Penalty for going without: $1,000 or twice the premium owed, plus $250 per day and personal liability for benefits
Oregon restores the waiting period retroactively if a worker is hospitalized overnight within the first 14 days, not only through the standard consecutive-day trigger.
Oregon vs neighboring states
- California: about $6.02 per $100 of payroll
- Idaho: about $3.00 per $100 of payroll
- Washington: about $9.18 per $100 of payroll
Oregon has the lowest fencing comp rate in its region; every neighboring state charges more per $100 of payroll.
Working across the line into Washington 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 fencing comp bill
- Fence erection rates sit above most interior trades because of post-hole augers, heavy material, and power tools. Auger training cuts the most serious claims.
- Fence crews often add decks, gates, or ornamental metal work, and those can rate in different classes. Tell your carrier what share of the work each represents.
- Seasonal crews and day labor are common in fencing. Every worker you pay counts at audit, so keep records for temporary hires.
- If you only sell and subcontract the installs, your own exposure is mostly sales and clerical, but only if every installer carries their own coverage.