{
  "slug": "labor-burden-rate",
  "title": "Labor Burden Rate Calculator",
  "heading": "Construction Labor Burden Rate Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/labor-burden-rate",
  "summary": "Compute the true loaded cost of a construction worker beyond base wage.",
  "description": "Labor burden is every cost of employing a worker beyond their base wage: employer FICA, FUTA/SUTA unemployment taxes, workers' compensation insurance (highly trade-specific and often the single largest burden component), general liability insurance allocation, health and retirement benefits, and paid time off. Contractors who estimate labor cost using base wage alone, or a rough flat burden guess, routinely underprice labor-intensive work because burden commonly adds 30-50% on top of base wage depending on trade risk classification and benefits offered. This calculator itemizes each standard burden component as a percentage or dollar add-on to base wage and returns the fully loaded hourly and annual cost, which is the number that should go into every estimate, job costing report, and crew productivity calculation — using base wage anywhere in that chain understates true labor cost.",
  "formula": "Loaded rate = Base wage + FICA + FUTA/SUTA + Workers' comp + GL allocation + Benefits/PTO, all calculated on base wage.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=labor-burden-rate",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "baseWage",
      "label": "Base wage",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 30,
      "unit": "$/hr",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "workersCompPct",
      "label": "Workers' comp rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 12,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 40
    },
    {
      "id": "unemploymentPct",
      "label": "FUTA/SUTA rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 3,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 10
    },
    {
      "id": "glPct",
      "label": "General liability allocation",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 2.5,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 10
    },
    {
      "id": "benefitsPct",
      "label": "Benefits + PTO",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 14,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 40
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "loadedRate",
      "label": "Fully loaded hourly rate",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "burdenPct",
      "label": "Total burden as % of base wage",
      "format": "percent",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "totalBurden",
      "label": "Total burden cost per hour",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "annualCost",
      "label": "Annualized cost (2,080 hrs)",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Base wage: 30 $/hr",
      "Workers' comp rate: 12 %",
      "FUTA/SUTA rate: 3 %",
      "General liability allocation: 2.5 %",
      "Benefits + PTO: 14 %"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Fully loaded hourly rate: $41.75",
      "Total burden as % of base wage: 39.1%",
      "Total burden cost per hour: $11.75",
      "Annualized cost (2,080 hrs): $86,829.60"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter base wage ($/hr).",
      "Enter workers' comp rate (%).",
      "Enter futa/suta rate (%).",
      "Enter general liability allocation (%).",
      "Enter benefits + pto (%).",
      "Read your fully loaded hourly rate on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "baseWage": 18,
        "workersCompPct": 7.199999999999999,
        "unemploymentPct": 1.7999999999999998,
        "glPct": 1.5,
        "benefitsPct": 8.4
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "baseWage": 30,
        "workersCompPct": 12,
        "unemploymentPct": 3,
        "glPct": 2.5,
        "benefitsPct": 14
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "baseWage": 48,
        "workersCompPct": 19.200000000000003,
        "unemploymentPct": 4.800000000000001,
        "glPct": 4,
        "benefitsPct": 22.400000000000002
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "Why is workers' comp rate so trade-dependent?",
      "a": "Workers' comp rates are set per trade classification code based on that trade's actual injury and claims history — roofing, structural steel, and demolition carry rates that can run 15-25%+ of payroll, while office administrative or estimating staff carry rates under 1%. Using a single company-average workers' comp rate across all trades on a job with a mixed crew will misprice whichever trade is most dangerous."
    },
    {
      "q": "Does FICA rate ever change or cap out?",
      "a": "The combined employer FICA rate of 7.65% (6.2% Social Security + 1.45% Medicare) applies to wages up to the annual Social Security wage base cap, after which only the 1.45% Medicare portion continues to apply. For most hourly construction workers this cap rarely comes into play within a single year unless they're working extraordinarily high overtime hours, but it matters for higher-paid supervisory staff."
    },
    {
      "q": "Should overtime hours use the same burden percentage as straight time?",
      "a": "Most percentage-based burden components (FICA, unemployment up to the wage cap, GL allocation) apply the same percentage to overtime pay, but workers' comp premium calculations sometimes use straight-time equivalent wages for overtime hours per state rules — check your state's specific workers' comp premium calculation rules since this varies and can meaningfully affect burden on overtime-heavy schedules."
    },
    {
      "q": "How often should burden rates be updated in the estimating system?",
      "a": "At minimum annually, since workers' comp experience modification ratings, unemployment insurance rates, and benefit plan costs all typically reset or get reviewed on an annual basis. A burden rate that's two or three years stale, especially after a claims year that spiked your experience mod, can leave real margin on the table across every bid using the outdated number."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/prevailing-wage-burden",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/crew-productivity-per-day",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/direct-vs-indirect-cost-ratio"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — Labor Burden Rate Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/labor-burden-rate)"
}