What does workers' compensation insurance cover?
Workers’ compensation insurance helps provide medical, rehabilitation, and disability benefits for artisan contractors and construction employees who become injured as a direct result of their job. Workers’ comp may also pay death benefits to an employee’s dependents if the construction worker is killed in a work-related incident.
In addition to helping artisan contractors and construction employees and their families, workers’ compensation insurance can also help protect construction business owners. Workers’ compensation helps protect construction businesses from liability for employees’ workplace injuries, and it helps keep employers from having to pay directly out of pocket for those injuries. This coverage may reduce the risk of a significant financial loss if a construction employee is harmed while performing work duties.
Depending on the laws in your state, to be considered compensable and therefore eligible for workers’ compensation, construction injuries must:
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have happened to a construction employee (not a vendor or independent contractor),
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be the result of a construction workplace injury or illness during employment, and
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cause impairment and/or lost wages.
What are relevant types of class codes?
When you’re ready to start your 3-minute quote, you’ll need to know your construction business’s class code.
A class code is assigned by the National Council of Compensation Insurance (NCCI) or by state agencies—and is created based on the activities and risk level the work requires.
There are many different workers’ comp class codes within the construction industry. Below are a few of the most common class codes in the industry.
5221 – Ground-supported concrete, cement, or paving work
5437 – Interior carpentry work
5022 – Masonry
5348 – Interior ceramic tile, marble, stone, terrazzo or mosaic work
8393 – Repair of automobile, bus, truck or trailer bodies