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Ventura County · Painter
Painter prevailing wage in Ventura County, California
$71.47an hour, total · Industrial Painter
$50.07 wage + $21.40 employer payments
Ventura County uses the same painter rates as 1 other county. See all of them on one page.
On California public works in Ventura County, a painter working as industrial painter must be paid at least $71.47 an hour in total: $50.07 in wages plus $21.40 in employer payments to health, pension, training and other funds. Daily overtime is $96.51 and Sunday and holiday work is $121.54.
DIR general determination 200-X-2, issued August 22, 2026. Expires June 30, 2027. Checked against dir.ca.gov on October 24, 2026.
DIR lists 5 painter rates for Ventura County, from $31.17 to $71.47 an hour. See all of them.
Base wage and fringe: $50.07 + $21.40
The basic hourly rate is the taxable wage. The other lines, usually called fringe benefits, are what DIR expects the employer to pay into health, pension and other plans for each hour worked. An employer can pay part of that as extra wages instead, as long as the total per hour stays at $71.47 or more.
| Basic hourly rate (taxable wage) (footnote Q) | $50.07 |
| Health and welfare | $9.20 |
| Pension | $6.29 |
| Vacation and holiday | $3.85 |
| Training | $0.85 |
| Other payments | $1.21 |
| Total straight-time hourly rate | $71.47 |
Straight time covers an 8-hour day.
Davis-Bacon painter rate in Ventura County
Federally funded or assisted construction here uses the U.S. Department of Labor's wage determinations. When a California awarding body runs a federally funded or assisted project, DIR's rates must be paid where they are higher than the Davis-Bacon rates (DIR public works FAQ).
We don't put a federal figure next to DIR's here, because this page leads with a classification the federal determinations don't list one to one. The federal rows for this trade are below; match the classification to the work.
| Construction | Federal classification | Base + fringe | Base | WD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Building, Highway, Heavy | PAINTERS: (3) JOURNEYMAN PAINTER INCLUDING LEAD ABATEMENTPAIN0036-007 | $55.02 | $36.44 | CA20260015 Mod 5 |
| Building, Highway, Heavy | PAINTERS: (4) INDUSTRIALPAIN0036-007 | $60.46 | $41.42 | CA20260015 Mod 5 |
| Building, Highway, Heavy | PAINTERS: (5) ALL OTHER WORKPAIN0036-007 | $55.02 | $36.44 | CA20260015 Mod 5 |
| Residential | PAINTER, INCLUDING LEAD ABATEMENT: (1) REPAINT (SAN LUIS OBISPO, SANTA BARBARA & VENTURA)PAIN0036-005 | $41.27 | $25.40 | CA20260017 Mod 5 |
| Residential | PAINTER, INCLUDING LEAD ABATEMENT: (2) ALL OTHER WORK IMPERIAL, LOS ANGELES, ORANGE, RIVERSIDE & SAN BERNARDINOPAIN0036-005 | $48.21 | $32.12 | CA20260017 Mod 5 |
| Residential | PAINTER, INCLUDING LEAD ABATEMENT: (3) JOURNEYMAN & INDUSTRIAL SAN LUIS OBISPO, SANTA BARBARA & VENTURAPAIN0036-005 | $50.51 | $34.02 | CA20260017 Mod 5 |
Davis-Bacon rates from SAM.gov, read October 25, 2026. Our federal totals are base plus fringe; DOL prints no total. California Davis-Bacon changes
Scheduled increases
DIR has already set these increases. Work on or after each date is paid the higher rate. DIR often leaves part of an increase "to be allocated to wages and/or employer payments" and confirms the split when it comes due, and it can reduce a scheduled increase in a later notice, so check DIR's increase page before you pay it.
| Takes effect | Increase per hour | Total after increase |
|---|---|---|
| July 1, 2027 | +$3.50 | $74.97 |
The double asterisk after DIR's expiration date means the next rate is already set. If the work runs past that date you have to pay the new rate, and DIR says to build it into contracts signed now (DIR FAQ, Q8).
Rate history since 2024
Total hourly rate for this classification in each DIR release. The chart under Scheduled increases above draws the same figures with the increases that follow.
| Release | Total | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-2 | $64.47 | |
| 2025-1 | $64.47 | no change |
| 2025-2 | $67.97 | +$3.50 |
| 2026-1 | $67.97 | no change |
| 2026-2 | $71.47 | +$3.50 |
Every painter rate in Ventura County
As DIR lists them. The highlighted row is the one this page leads with.
- Industrial Painter$71.47
- Painter, Lead Abatement$64.53
- Graffiti Removal Worker Journeyman (Applies Only to Paint-Over Method)$40.67
- Graffiti Removal Worker 2 (Applies Only to Paint-Over Method)$32.04
- Graffiti Removal Worker 1 (Applies Only to Paint-Over Method)$31.17
| Classification | Total | Base | Employer payments | Daily OT | Determination |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Painter: Graffiti Removal Worker 1 (Applies Only to Paint-Over Method) | $31.17 | $20.95 | $10.22 | $41.65 | 200-X-3 |
| Painter: Graffiti Removal Worker 2 (Applies Only to Paint-Over Method) | $32.04 | $21.82 | $10.22 | $42.95 | 200-X-3 |
| Painter: Graffiti Removal Worker Journeyman (Applies Only to Paint-Over Method) | $40.67 | $30.45 | $10.22 | $55.90 | 200-X-3 |
| Industrial Painter | $71.47 | $50.07 | $21.40 | $96.51 | 200-X-2 |
| Painter, Lead Abatement | $64.53 | $43.59 | $20.94 | $86.33 | 200-X-2 |
How Ventura County compares
The main painter rate in every county that has one, and how the pay splits here and in the nearest counties. All bars use the same scale.
Every county in California
Wage and employer payments, nearby
- Ventura Countybase $50.07$71.47
- Los Angeles Countybase $50.07$71.47
- Santa Barbara Countybase $50.07$71.47
- Kings Countybase $39.65$64.14
Painter rates in nearby counties
Current DIR rates. You pay the rate for the county where the work is done, even if your shop is somewhere else.
DIR's painter rates for Ventura County are the same as in 1 other county: San Luis Obispo.
| County | Classification | Total | Base | vs Ventura County |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ventura County | Industrial Painter | $71.47 | $50.07 | |
| Los Angeles County | Industrial Painter | $71.47 | $50.07 | same |
| Santa Barbara County | Industrial Painter | $71.47 | $50.07 | same |
| Kern County | Industrial Painter | $71.47 | $50.07 | same |
| Orange County | Industrial Painter | $71.47 | $50.07 | same |
| San Luis Obispo County | Industrial Painter | $71.47 | $50.07 | same |
| Kings County | Painter | $64.14 | $39.65 | −$7.33 |
Footnotes on this rate
DIR's footnotes, in DIR's words. Several change the rate itself: zone pay, a percentage added to the total, or which overtime hours get which rate.
- Q Includes amount withheld for working dues.
- AE Double time shall be paid for all hours worked over 12 hours in any one day.
- AD An additional $3.00 per hour will be added to the basic hourly rate when performing paperhanging work.
DIR's other marks: # means an apprenticeable craft, * means in effect until superseded, ** means the next rate is already set.
More from DIR on this rate
- Holidays (DIR PDF)
- Scope of work: which tasks this rate covers
- Travel and subsistence
- Apprentice rates: DIR publishes these separately, by program. Look them up on DIR.
Are you being paid this rate?
Add your hourly wage to what your employer pays into health, pension and other plans for you, and compare it with $71.47. Plan payments only count if the money goes into the plan; your pay stub won't show them, but plan statements will. The training amount goes to the California Apprenticeship Council or an apprenticeship program, not to you. Check a week of pay.
Contractors on most public works jobs file certified payroll with the state, and anyone can look it up in DIR's CPR public search. If your total comes up short, you can file a public works complaint with the California Labor Commissioner.
Source
California Department of Industrial Relations, general prevailing wage determination 200-X-2: www.dir.ca.gov/oprl/2026-2/PWD/Determinations/Subtrades/VEN.html
Each figure is copied from DIR's file and checked by a second, separate reader. How we check · How to read a determination · Download Ventura County as CSV · Report an error