California Plastering and Stucco Class Codes 5484 vs 5485 and the $42.00 Threshold

Sep 7

5 min read

Quick answer: 5484 vs 5485 in California

5484 is the low-wage code and 5485 the high-wage code for plastering or stucco work. For policies incepting on or after September 1, 2026, the wage split moves from $38.00 to $42.00 per hour. The approved pure premium rates effective 9/1/2026 are $8.447 for 5484 and $6.452 for 5485, so the low-wage code costs about 31% more per $100 of payroll. Source: WCIRB Classification Search, codes 5484 and 5485, pure premium rates effective 9/1/2026. Verified September 7, 2026 by CPR Business Solutions.

Will we write it? Tell us the operation, the state, and roughly where the mod sits — we’ll come back within one business day with a straight answer: yes, no, or what we’d need to see. No ACORD, no loss runs, no obligation. Agents and business owners both welcome. Run it past us here.

The plasterers who just became low-wage

A plasterer earning $40.00 an hour was a high-wage employee under the old $38.00 threshold and was reported in 5485. From September 1, 2026 the threshold is $42.00, so the same person at the same wage doing the same work is now reported in 5484. Nothing about the risk changed. The cost did.

At a 1.00 mod over 2,000 hours, that employee’s workers’ comp goes from about $5,162 to about $6,758 — an increase of $1,596, or 31%. At a 1.75 mod the same worker goes from roughly $9,033 to $11,826. On a crew of ten in that wage band, at a 1.75 mod, that is about $28,000 of additional annual premium for no change in payroll.

Which code is which

5485 — high wage. Application of plaster, veneer plaster or stucco to interior and exterior building surfaces, fireproofing on structural steel, and fog coat on stucco by employees whose regular hourly wage equals or exceeds $42.00.
5484 — low wage. The same operations for employees below $42.00, and for any employee whose wage the employer cannot verify with time records — undocumented payroll defaults to the low-wage code.
The narrowest gap in the table. 5485 is itself an expensive code — $6.452 is higher than the low-wage rate for glaziers, wallboard, sheet metal or sprinkler — so the threshold matters less here than the base rate does.

Rate history

5484 went from $8.940 (9/1/2024) to $8.230 (9/1/2025) to $8.447 (9/1/2026) — up 2.6% this cycle and still below its 2024 level. 5485 went from $5.550 to $5.870 to $6.452, up 9.9%. Plastering is unusual: both codes are expensive, the gap is only 31%, and the $4.00 threshold move from $38.00 to $42.00 pushes a lot of typical stucco payroll across the line for a relatively small per-employee penalty.

When the raise pays for itself

Per 2,000-hour employee at a 1.00 mod, raising to $42.00 from:

$39.00 — raise costs $6,000 in wages, premium falls $1,169. Net cost $4,831.
$40.00 — raise costs $4,000 in wages, premium falls $1,338. Net cost $2,662.
$41.00 — raise costs $2,000 in wages, premium falls $1,507. Net cost $493.
$41.50 — raise costs $1,000 in wages, premium falls $1,591. Net saving $591.

Break-even is about $41.23 per hour at a 1.00 mod, before payroll taxes on the raise. With only a 31% gap, the raise pays inside the last 77 cents and nowhere else — plastering is the one dual-wage trade where reclassification is usually cheaper than the raise.

A worse mod lowers the break-even

0.90 mod — $41.30
1.00 mod — $41.23
1.25 mod — $41.05
1.50 mod — $40.88
1.75 mod — $40.72
2.00 mod — $40.57

At a 1.75 mod a plasterer at $41.99 costs $48.20 an hour all-in. At $42.00 they cost $46.74 — $2,910 per FTE per year for one cent of wage. Mod cleanup takes three years; reclassification takes one payroll run. If the mod itself is the problem, that is a separate placement question.

Classification carve-outs for plastering and stucco

Lathing is separately classified as 5443, Lathing — it is not part of the plastering pair even when the same crew does both.
Swimming pool plastering goes to 5201(1)/5205(1), Concrete or Cement Work, which carries a $36.00 threshold instead of $42.00.
Drywall is 5446/5447 at $45.00. A drywall-and-plaster sub carries two thresholds three dollars apart, and payroll not tied to the task by time records defaults to the low-wage code in each.

What else lands on the same renewal

September 1, 2026 is a crowded date: all sixteen dual-wage thresholds move, the advisory pure premium level rises 10.4%, and the experience rating eligibility threshold goes to $11,700. Pull the 5484/5485 payroll split on the expiring term versus the quoted term, and a list of employees within a few dollars of $42.00. That second list is where the decisions are.

One honest caveat

These are WCIRB approved pure premium rates — advisory benchmarks, not the rates any carrier charges. California is an open-rating state; every insurer files its own rates and applies its own schedule and experience modifications. The shape of the 5484/5485 gap holds across the market because the loss data underneath is the same, but the exact break-even for a given account depends on the carrier’s filed rates and the client’s mod. Run it on the real quote.

Plastering and stucco class code FAQ

What is the California class code for stucco contractors?

5484 for employees paid under $42.00 an hour and 5485 for employees at or above $42.00, for policies incepting on or after September 1, 2026. The pair covers plaster, veneer plaster and stucco on interior and exterior surfaces, plus fireproofing on structural steel and fog coat.

Is lathing included in the plastering class code?

No. Lathing is separately classified as 5443 even when the same employer does the plastering.

Why is the plastering high-wage rate so high compared with other trades?

5485 at $6.452 per $100 is higher than the low-wage rate in several other dual-wage trades. Plastering is rated as a high-severity class at every wage level, which is why the gap to 5484 is only 31% — the smallest in the dual-wage table.

Placing California plastering and stucco accounts

CPR Business Solutions is a wholesale workers’ compensation broker and MGA built around high-mod and hard-to-place accounts. If a plastering and stucco client has just seen payroll reclassify from 5485 to 5484, has a mod above 1.50, or has been non-renewed after an audit, that is the account we want.

Call 714-928-3858 or email proposals@cprbrokers.com.