July 2024 – Workers’ Compensation – Changes Coming to Electronics, Dual-Wage Class Codes

CALIFORNIA INSURANCE Commissioner Ricardo Lara on May 31 approved all of the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau’s recommended changes to class codes for some electronics manufacturing sectors, as well as increases to the wage thresholds for construction industry dual classifications.
The following changes will take effect for policies incepting on or after Sept. 1, 2024:

Electronics manufacturing industry

One of the changes links two more classes to the 8874 companion classification, which was created in September 2022 to cover certain low-risk classes in the electronics industry group.
Currently, 8874 is a companion class that covers payroll for lower-risk jobs in hardware and software design and development, computer-aided design, clerical and outside sales operations for two electronics industry classes:
• 3681 (manufacturing operations for electronic
instruments, computer peripherals, telecommunications
equipment), and
• 4112 (integrated circuit and semiconductor wafer manufacturing).

Starting Sept. 1, similar low-risk white-collar personnel currently assigned to class 3572 (medical instrument manufacturing) and 3682 (non-electric instrument manufacturing) will be linked to the 8874 companion class code.

Dual-wage increases

The thresholds that separate high- and low-wage earners in 16 dual-wage construction classes are also increasing Sept. 1.
These class codes have vastly different pure premium rates for workers above and below a certain threshold as the lower-wage workers (often who are less experienced) have historically filed more workers’ comp claims.
Rates for lower-wage workers are often double the rates for higher-wage workers.