CA Workers Comp Rates Rose Sept 1, 2026
California’s benchmark workers comp rate now averages $1.65 per $100 of payroll, and wage cutoffs rose for 13 construction trades. What it means for your renewal.
For California workers’ comp policies starting or renewing on or after September 1, 2026, the approved advisory pure premium rates average $1.65 per $100 of payroll. The California Department of Insurance approved a 6.6 percent increase over the 2025 approved rates; the WCIRB had requested 10.4 percent. For contractors, a second change can matter more: the hourly wage cutoffs that decide which class code a worker falls into went up for 13 construction trades.
Why Rates Went Up
The WCIRB pointed to more frequent cumulative trauma claims, higher medical costs, and higher claim-handling expenses. Advisory rates are a benchmark for expected losses, not the price you pay. Each carrier files its own rates, and your premium also depends on your class codes, payroll, and experience modification. But the benchmark shows which direction the market is moving.
The Wage Cutoff Change
Sixteen California construction trades are split into a high-wage and a low-wage class code. Workers paid at or above the hourly cutoff go into the high-wage code, which has a lower rate. Workers below it go into the low-wage code, which costs more. For policies starting on or after September 1, 2026, the cutoffs rose for 13 trades, including:
- Carpentry and steel framing: $41 to $46 an hour
- Wallboard (drywall): $41 to $45 an hour
- Electrical: $36 to $40 an hour
- Plumbing and HVAC: $32 to $35 an hour
- Concrete: $33 to $36 an hour
- Painting and waterproofing: $32 to $36 an hour
- Roofing: $31 to $33 an hour
A framer paid $44 an hour was in the cheaper high-wage code last year. On a renewal after September 1, 2026, the same worker falls below the new $46 cutoff and moves to the more expensive code, with no change in pay or duties.
How to Soften Your Renewal
- Check every worker near a cutoff. A small raise that moves someone into the high-wage code can pay for part of itself in premium savings
- Keep clean, per-employee payroll records that show the hourly rate actually paid
- Split office, estimating, and sales time into their lower-rated codes when your records support it
- Collect a certificate of insurance from every subcontractor, or their pay can be added to your payroll at audit
- Shop the renewal. Carrier appetite for construction classes varies widely