Workers' Compensation on a California Contractor License

Half of active C-10 electrical licenses (49.9%) are exempt from workers' compensation, which means the holder certified to CSLB that it has no employees. Roofers cannot use that exemption: 5,075 of 5,524 active C-39 licenses have an insurance policy on file.

Counts are from the CSLB License Master file of Sep 24, 2026; the 2028 date is from section 7125.^1,2,9

What CSLB Shows

Business and Professions Code section 7125 requires a license to have a current certificate of workers' compensation insurance or a certification of self-insurance on file at all times. The one way out today is a filed statement that the licensee has no employees.¹ CSLB accepts three documents:³

An inactive license needs no certificate or exemption while it stays inactive.¹ Insurers must report each policy to CSLB with its start, lapse and cancellation dates.¹ How these fields look on the record is in Reading a CSLB License Record.

What Exempt Means

Exempt is a statement by the licensee, not a policy. The licensee certifies that it does not employ anyone in a way that makes it subject to California workers' compensation law.¹ CSLB says the exemption is not valid if the licensee employs anyone in that way, including home improvement salespersons.³

A licensee qualified by a responsible managing employee cannot be exempt, because that qualifier is an employee.³ Neither can a license with C-8 concrete, C-20 warm-air heating, C-22 asbestos abatement, C-39 roofing or D-49 tree service.^1,3

The Roofing Exception

Section 7125(b)(2) lists C-39 among the classes that cannot claim the exemption, so a roofer needs a policy or self-insurance even with no employees.^1,3 Section 7125(f) covers licenses active from January 1, 2013 that hold C-39 plus other classes. Without a valid certificate, the registrar removes the C-39 class instead of suspending the whole license.¹

A license that lost C-39 this way and is later found to have employees without coverage is suspended.¹ For a roofing job, an exempt entry on a C-39 license is a reason to call CSLB before signing. Roof permit and reroofing rules are in Reroofing Rules.

The 2028 Change

Senate Bill 1455 (Stats. 2024, Ch. 485) left two versions of section 7125 in the code. The current one is repealed on January 1, 2028. The version operative from that date keeps only one exemption: a joint venture with no employees.^1,2

Risk to a Homeowner

CSLB tells consumers that if a worker is hurt on your property and the contractor has no insurance, "you could be financially liable" for injuries and rehabilitation.⁴ For owner-builders, CSLB warns the bill may land on the homeowner's insurance policy or come as a lawsuit.⁵

The Labor Code explains why. An employee of an employer that failed to secure workers' compensation may sue that employer in court as if the workers' compensation law did not apply.⁶ The employee may also file with the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board.⁷ When an illegally uninsured employer does not pay an award, the state Uninsured Employers Benefits Trust Fund pays the claim.⁸

An exempt license is not proof that only the owner will be on site. If helpers arrive with an exempt contractor, the exemption no longer matches the facts.^1,3 Hiring someone without the required license raises separate questions, covered in Unlicensed Contracting.

Coverage Types in the CSLB File

We counted active licenses: primary status "CLEAR" and an expiration date on or after Sep 24, 2026. That is 230,477 of the 244,908 licenses in the file. A license is in a class if its classification list contains C10 or C39; 247 licenses hold both and appear in both columns.⁹

Electrical licenses look like the whole register: about half exempt, about half insured. Roofing licenses are the opposite, with one exempt record among 5,524. That one license also holds other classes; section 7125 does not allow a C-39 license to be exempt, so the live record is the place to check.^1,9

The 28 active C-39 licenses and 96 active C-10 licenses marked "License does not have current W/C" still show primary status "CLEAR". The file does not say why. Coverage may be in transition, or a suspension may be on the way.^3,9 Across all active licenses, 3,119 carry the secondary status "WC Susp Pending"; 330 are C-10 and 125 are C-39.⁹

How to Check Before You Hire

1. Look up the license on CSLB's Check a License page. CSLB says workers' compensation details appear there.⁴
2. Read the coverage type. For a policy, note the carrier and the expiration date, and confirm the policy runs past your job dates.
3. If the record says Exempt, ask who will work on site. Any helper means the exemption does not fit the job.
4. For roofing, expect a policy or self-insurance on any C-39 license. Exempt or no current coverage on a roofer is a stop sign.
5. Match the class to the job: see California License Classifications and Hiring an Electrician.

The other financial protection on a license, the $25,000 bond, is covered in Contractor Bonds on a California License.