Does Oregon require workers’ compensation insurance?
Yes. Oregon requires workers' compensation from the first worker: ORS 656.023 makes every employer of one or more subject workers subject to the law, and the Workers' Compensation Division says that if you employ one or more workers, you are an employer. There is no head-count floor. Sole proprietors, most LLC members, and corporate officers who are directors with a substantial ownership interest are nonsubject by statute, with tighter rules for construction.
Updated . Written by Andre Beukers, principal at Redoubt, a commercial insurance agency in Salt Lake City, not a government office.
How many employees before Oregon requires workers' comp?
Oregon has no minimum head count. Every employer with one or more subject workers in the state must carry coverage, and every worker is a subject worker unless one of the roughly 30 exemptions in ORS 656.027 applies. The Workers' Compensation Division counts anyone you pay to work for you as a worker unless they qualify as an independent contractor.
Domestic, gardening, and repair workers in a private home are exempt, and so is casual work outside your trade: a total labor cost under $1,000 in any 30-day period, indexed each July 1 under ORS 656.027(3). Someone you call a 1099 contractor has to pass Oregon's independent contractor test in ORS 670.600, including any CCB license the work needs, or they are your worker.
Source: Oregon Workers' Compensation Division, Insurance overview, checked .
Which owners, officers, and family members are exempt in Oregon?
Under ORS 656.027, sole proprietors are nonsubject workers, and so are LLC members regardless of the work they do, and corporate officers who are directors with a substantial ownership interest. Construction narrows that: partners and members of a multi-member LLC doing construction work are subject workers unless the business holds a Construction Contractors Board or landscape license. In a licensed partnership, LLC, or corporation that is not wholly family-owned, only owners with a substantial ownership interest qualify, capped at two or one per 10 employees, whichever is greater.
An exempt owner can still choose coverage. Under ORS 656.128, a sole proprietor, LLC member, partner, or independent contractor applies to an insurer, which sets a class and an assumed wage.
Source: ORS 656.027, checked .
What happens to a Oregon employer with no workers' comp?
Under ORS 656.735, the Department of Consumer and Business Services assesses an employer caught without coverage a civil penalty of twice the premium that would have been due for the uninsured period, with a $1,000 minimum, then up to $250 a day if the violation continues after the order is final. Corporate officers and directors, LLC members and managers, and partners are jointly and severally liable for the penalty and for any claim costs. Each day of operating uninsured is a separate Class D violation under ORS 656.990.
Source: ORS 656.735, checked .
Who enforces workers' comp in Oregon?
The Workers' Compensation Division of the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services enforces the requirement. When it finds an employer without coverage, it issues an order naming the period of noncompliance and the penalty, and after a third order it asks a court for a permanent injunction. Your insurer files proof of coverage with the Division, and anyone, including a hiring contractor, can check an employer's coverage with the Division's online lookup.
Source: Oregon Workers' Compensation Division, Penalties, checked .
Where do Oregon employers buy coverage?
Oregon has a competitive state fund. SAIF Corporation, created under ORS 656.752, writes workers' compensation alongside private insurers and competes with them for the same employers. An employer can buy from SAIF, from any other insurer authorized in Oregon, or qualify to self-insure under ORS 656.017.
The Workers' Compensation Division says more than 300 insurers are approved to write Oregon policies. An employer no insurer will take goes to the Oregon Assigned Risk Insurance Plan, which NCCI administers.
Source: ORS 656.752, checked .
Who sets the class codes and rates in Oregon?
Oregon is an NCCI state. NCCI makes Oregon's annual filing and publishes an Oregon State Advisory Report on it; class codes and experience mods follow NCCI's rules. The filing sets the pure premium, the part of the premium meant to cover expected claims, and each insurer prices its own policies on top, so the same class code can cost different amounts from one carrier to the next.
Source: NCCI, State Advisory Resources: Oregon, checked .
Is there an exemption or waiver form in Oregon?
Not for most owners. The ORS 656.027 exemptions apply by law, and the Workers' Compensation Division points owners to that statute rather than to a waiver form. The filing that does exist is for construction: a contractor licensed with the Construction Contractors Board declares itself exempt (no employees) or nonexempt, and a nonexempt contractor gives the CCB its insurer and policy number.
Under ORS 701.035(5), a CCB-exempt contractor licensed as a commercial contractor must still carry workers' compensation on the owner through the ORS 656.128 election. A partnership, corporation, or LLC whose owners are all family members can be CCB-exempt even with several of them working.
Source: Oregon Construction Contractors Board, CCB License, checked .
Sorting out Oregon workers' comp for your business
Tell Redoubt what the business does, who works in it, and what the Oregon requirement in front of you says. We will say whether a policy, a waiver, or an exclusion fits.
This is general insurance information, not legal advice or a coverage determination. Statutes, agency instructions, policy forms, and the facts of the business control.
Workers’ comp requirements in every state
Each state page gives the employee threshold, the owner and officer exemptions, the penalty for going without, the rating bureau, the market, the enforcing agency, and the exemption filing, each with its statute or agency source.
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The hub, and the Oregon pages that go deeper
Oregon workers’ comp FAQ
Do I need workers' comp in Oregon with one employee?+
Yes. ORS 656.023 makes any employer of one or more subject workers subject to the law, and part-time workers count. The main carve-outs are domestic workers in a private home and casual work outside your trade that stays under the $1,000-per-30-days labor cost in ORS 656.027.
Does an Oregon LLC owner need workers' comp?+
Usually not for themselves. LLC members are nonsubject workers under ORS 656.027 regardless of the work they do. The exception is a multi-member LLC doing construction: its members are subject workers unless the company holds a CCB or landscape license and the ownership limits in ORS 656.027(25) are met.
Can I buy workers' comp from SAIF instead of a private insurer?+
Yes. SAIF Corporation is Oregon's competitive state fund under ORS 656.752 and sells policies alongside private insurers.
What does an Oregon general contractor need from a subcontractor with no employees?+
Usually proof that the sub is an exempt CCB licensee and meets the independent contractor test in ORS 670.600. Under ORS 656.029, if the work is a normal part of your business, you are responsible for covering anyone on the job who is not exempt unless the sub covers them before work starts. A sub with no employees can get a certificate by electing owner coverage under ORS 656.128.