Rhode Island Flooring Workers Comp Rates (2026)
Rhode Island does not publish its flooring class figures online. Across the 26 states that do, the median typical premium is about $2.94 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 flooring
- 5478: Floor Covering Installation - Resilient Flooring, Carpet and Laminate Flooring
- 5437 (Carpentry - Installation of Cabinet Work or Interior Trim, includes wood floor installation and sanding)
- 5348 (Tile, Stone, Mosaic or Terrazzo Work - Inside)
Flooring carries knee injury, back strain, silica dust from cutting tile or concrete, and adhesive vapor risks.
What comp costs per flooring installer in Rhode Island
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 2,110 construction laborers on payrolls in Rhode Island (May 2025), the 48th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $27.52 an hour, 21% above the US median of $22.66.
This trade is a smaller part of the Rhode Island job market than it is nationally: construction laborers hold 0.60 times their national share of jobs there.
At the US median of $2.94 per $100 of payroll (Rhode Island does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.81 for every hour worked, or $1,683 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $3,366 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 $18.98 an hour at the 10th percentile to $42.61 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.56 an hour on a new hire and $1.25 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 $3.63 per $100 of payroll
- Massachusetts: about $2.95 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 flooring comp at about $2.95 and Connecticut the most expensive at about $3.63 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 flooring comp bill
- Floor installers file knee, back, and repetitive-strain claims more than falls. Kneepads and lifting aids are cheap ways to keep the experience mod down.
- Tile, hardwood, and carpet installation can be separate classes in some states. If your crews do several, record payroll by type of work.
- Many flooring shops pay installers by the square foot as 1099 subs. If they cannot show their own coverage, the auditor counts what you pay them as your payroll.
- Showroom and sales staff who do not install can usually be rated as sales or clerical when their duties are documented.