What is the workers comp class code for a restaurant, and is it still 9079 in California?
A class code is the number a rating bureau gives a kind of work, and comp is priced on the payroll in each one. California’s rating bureau (WCIRB) does not use 9079 in its manual effective September 1, 2026. It splits restaurants three ways: 9080 for full table service, 9083 for fast food or fast casual where customers order and pay first and seat themselves, and 9081(1), Restaurants N.O.C., for the rest, including food trucks that cook hot food. Other states use their own codes, so New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey each answer differently. The carrier assigns the code from how your restaurant actually serves.
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Which California code fits how you serve
Paraphrased from the WCIRB manual effective September 1, 2026. Each separate and distinct restaurant is classified on its own.
Servers seat guests, take orders at the table and bring the check
- California code
- 9080
- The test the manual uses
- Full table service
Guests order and pay at a counter, kiosk, app or drive-through
- California code
- 9083
- The test the manual uses
- Pay first, seat yourself
Food truck, cart or booth cooking hot food
- California code
- 9081(1)
- The test the manual uses
- Hot food prepared for sale
Hot food counter inside a grocery store
- California code
- 9081(1)
- The test the manual uses
- Named in the class
Cold sandwiches, wraps and salads only
- California code
- 8078(1)
- The test the manual uses
- Half or more of receipts from cold food, no hot food or alcohol
Coffee, tea or juice drinks
- California code
- 8078(2)
- The test the manual uses
- Half or more of receipts from prepared nonalcoholic drinks
App delivery company carrying restaurant meals
- California code
- 7198(1)
- The test the manual uses
- Delivery, not food service
The detail
California’s 9080, Restaurants full service, applies to each separate and distinct restaurant with full table service, which the manual describes as greeting and seating customers, taking orders and serving at tables, clearing tables and collecting payment when the meal is over.
California’s 9083, Restaurants fast food or fast casual, applies where customers order at a counter, drive-through, kiosk or app, pay when they order and seat themselves, and it allows limited table service such as bringing paid orders to tables, refilling drinks or clearing tables.
California’s 9081(1), Restaurants N.O.C., covers restaurants no other food service code describes, including hot food departments in grocery stores, food trucks, trailers, carts or booths that prepare hot food, and food or beverage operations run by amusement, recreational or athletic facilities.
All three California restaurant codes include restaurants that pour and serve alcohol, and 9080 and 9081(1) include musicians and entertainers the restaurant employs.
A California department where at least half of gross receipts come from prepared cold food, with no hot food or alcohol, is 8078(1), Sandwich Shops, and a shop mainly preparing coffee, tea or juice drinks is 8078(2), Beverage Preparation Shops.
Beer brewed at a California restaurant stays in the restaurant code when over half of it is sold at the employer’s own restaurants for drinking there. Otherwise the brewing is classified separately as 2121, Breweries.
App-based delivery network companies that deliver restaurant meals for a fee are classified in California as 7198(1), Parcel Delivery and Messenger Service Companies, not in a restaurant code.
New York uses 9071 for full-service restaurants with wait service where more than half of sales are food eaten on the premises, 9072 for fast food and for restaurants where take-out is more than half of gross receipts, and 9074 for bars, lounges, nightclubs and taverns where more than half of sales are alcohol.
Pennsylvania uses its own restaurant codes, 0975 Restaurant N.O.C. for a traditional restaurant with wait staff, 0897 Fast-Food Restaurant and 0899 for a bar, tavern, cocktail lounge or nightclub.
New Jersey lists restaurants, bars, lounges, taverns and caterers under 9079, excludes board, lodging and gratuities from the premium basis, and rates musicians and entertainers separately under 9156.
NJCRIB, New Jersey Rate and Classification Handbook, effective January 1, 2026, code 9079
Wisconsin’s class list carries 9082 Restaurant NOC, 9083 Restaurant fast food and 9084 for bars, nightclubs and taverns alongside 9079.
WCRB, Wisconsin Class Code Descriptions, document dated October 23, 2026
What this means for you
- Check your code against your floor, not your menu. California decides between 9080 and 9083 on table service. A fast casual place that brings the food out is still 9083 if guests ordered and paid first, and a restaurant that seats guests and brings a check is 9080.
- A policy carrying 9079 for California is worth a question. The September 2026 California manual has no 9079. If an older policy or a quote still shows it, ask your agent which current code the carrier is using.
- Each location is classified on its own. The manual applies the restaurant codes to each separate and distinct restaurant, so a group with a sit-down room and a counter-service spot can carry two codes.
- Brewing and baking can split off. Beer or baked goods made mainly for your own restaurants stay in the restaurant code. Sell most of it elsewhere and the manual moves that work to its own class.
- Out of state, start again. New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey each use different codes and tests, and New Jersey rates entertainers apart from the restaurant. A group across state lines is classified state by state.
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Related questions
- Is 9079 still the restaurant class code in California?
Not in the WCIRB manual effective September 1, 2026, which has no 9079. California restaurants are 9080 for full table service, 9083 for fast food or fast casual, or 9081(1) for restaurants neither describes. 9079 is still used in other states, New Jersey among them.
- We are fast casual but bring food to the table. Are we 9080 or 9083?
Under the California manual, likely 9083 if guests order and pay at the counter, kiosk or app and seat themselves. The 9083 wording allows bringing paid orders to tables, refilling drinks and clearing tables. Full table service means seating guests, taking orders at the table and collecting payment after the meal. The carrier makes the call from how you actually serve.
- What code is a food truck in California?
A truck, trailer, cart or booth that cooks hot food is 9081(1), Restaurants N.O.C., in the 2026 manual. One that sells only drinks, packaged food or cold food is classed by what it sells, such as 8078(1) for sandwiches or 8078(2) for drinks.
- Food truck insurance
- Our servers earn most of their money in tips. Do tips count as payroll?
That depends on the state’s rules. New Jersey’s 2026 handbook says the premium basis for its restaurant and bar code does not include gratuities. Other states set their own rules on what counts as payroll, so ask your agent how your state treats tips before you estimate payroll for the policy.
- Is a bar classified differently from a restaurant?
In many states, yes. New York uses 9074 where more than half of sales are alcohol, Pennsylvania uses 0899 and Wisconsin’s list has 9084. New Jersey lists bars under the same 9079 as restaurants. California’s restaurant codes include restaurants that pour and serve alcohol.
- Bar insurance
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Written by Kevin Kelsey, founder and principal agent, CA License #6011822, at Boring Insurance. Last updated 2026-10-27. See all guides.