Alaska Painting Workers Comp Rates (2026)
The published Alaska loss cost for painting workers comp, class 5474 (Painting or Paperhanging NOC & Shop Operations, Drivers), is $2.568 per $100 of payroll (effective January 1, 2026). Carriers multiply it by their own filed multiplier, so a typical premium is about $3.85.
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.
Alaska class code for painting
- 5474: Painting NOC & Shop Operations, Drivers
- 5037 (Painting: Metal Structures - Over Two Stories in Height & Drivers)
- 5491 (Paperhanging & Drivers)
Painting carries ladder fall risk, solvent exposure and lead paint hazards in buildings built before 1978.
What comp costs per painter in Alaska
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 440 painters on payrolls in Alaska (May 2025), the 50th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $29.32 an hour, 23% above the US median of $23.75.
Painters make up about the same share of Alaska jobs as they do nationally (location quotient 0.94).
At a typical Alaska premium of about $3.85 per $100 of payroll (the published loss cost of $2.57 for class 5474 times a 1.5 carrier multiplier), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $1.13 for every hour worked, or $2,348 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $7,044 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Alaska pay runs from $21.09 an hour at the 10th percentile to $41.08 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.81 an hour on a new hire and $1.58 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Alaska
- Coverage required: 1 employee
- Owners and sole proprietors: Owners with 10%+ ownership are excluded; employees must still be covered
- State fund: Private market (no state fund)
- Waiting period: 3 days; retroactive if disability lasts more than 28 days
- Penalty for going without: Up to $1,000 per employee per day, stop-work orders, and a 3-year bar on public contracts
A hiring contractor in Alaska becomes liable for a subcontractor's employees if that sub lacks its own coverage.
Alaska vs neighboring states
- Washington: about $6.61 per $100 of payroll
- Oregon: about $4.63 per $100 of payroll
Alaska has no land border, so this compares it with the nearest mainland markets.
Alaska has the lowest painting 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 painting comp bill
- Painting rates are set by height and surface: interior repaint work and exterior or industrial painting can fall into different classes in many states. Describe your mix accurately at quote time.
- Ladder and scaffold falls are the costly claims. Scaffold training and inspection logs help when you ask a carrier for safety credits.
- Painting crews lean on 1099 labor. Without a certificate of insurance on file, the auditor will add those payments to your payroll.
- Seasonal exterior work makes payroll hard to forecast. Estimate the year, not your busiest month, so the deposit and the audit stay close.