Home / Minnesota / Insulator (Heat & Frost / Asbestos Worker) / St. Louis County group
Minnesota · Insulator (Heat & Frost / Asbestos Worker) · 12 counties
Insulator (Heat & Frost / Asbestos Worker) prevailing wage, St. Louis County group, Minnesota (12 counties)
DLI sets the same insulator rates, row for row, in 12 counties: Aitkin, Beltrami, Carlton, Cass, Cook, Crow Wing, Hubbard, Itasca, Koochiching, Pine, St. Louis and Wadena. Every figure on this page applies in each of them.
$76.96an hour, base wage + fringe benefits
$53.18 base wage + $23.78 fringe benefits
On Minnesota public works in each of these 12 counties, an insulator must be paid at least $76.96 an hour: a $53.18 base wage plus $23.78 in fringe.
DLI certifications of Nov 3 and Dec 22, 2025 (revised to Feb 9, 2026); this rate, effective December 22, 2025. The rates "must be ascertained before the state asks for bids" and written into the contract, with their dated steps (Minn. Stat. 177.43). Checked against dli.mn.gov on October 25, 2026.
Base wage and fringe benefits: $53.18 + $23.78
The base wage is the taxable hourly wage. DLI prints the fringe as one hourly figure, not itemized; it can go to health, pension, vacation and training plans, or be paid as cash where the state allows.
| Base wage (taxable) | $53.18 |
| Fringe benefits (one figure, not itemized) | $23.78 |
| Total hourly rate, as printed | $76.96 |
When does this rate change?
- Minnesota rates are set before bids and written into the contract, including their dated steps (Minn. Stat. 177.43, subd. 3–4). The schedule in your bid documents controls.
- DLI certifies rates at least once a year from a survey of the previous 12 months, and may certify changes at any time (Minn. R. 5200.1020, 5200.1120). Highway/heavy was certified November 3, 2025 and commercial December 22, 2025, with revisions through February 9, 2026.
Davis-Bacon insulator rates in these counties
The counties share DLI's rates, but not always the same federal wage determination. When a contract requires both the state rate and the Davis-Bacon rate, paying the higher of the two meets both. The contract documents say which apply.
| County | Federal classification | Base + fringe | WD | vs DLI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aitkin County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260027 Mod 2 | same |
| Beltrami County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260030 Mod 2 | same |
| Carlton County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260035 Mod 2 | same |
| Cass County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260037 Mod 2 | same |
| Cook County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260042 Mod 2 | same |
| Crow Wing County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260044 Mod 2 | same |
| Hubbard County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260055 Mod 2 | same |
| Itasca County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260057 Mod 2 | same |
| Koochiching County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260062 Mod 2 | same |
| Pine County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260084 Mod 2 | same |
| St. Louis County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260098 Mod 2 | same |
| Wadena County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATOR | $76.96 | MN20260106 Mod 2 | same |
How the St. Louis County group compares
The main insulator rate in every county that has one, and how the pay splits here and nearby. All bars use the same scale.
Every county in Minnesota
Wage and fringe, nearby
- St. Louis County groupbase $53.18$76.96
- Lake Countybase $53.18$76.96
- Itasca Countybase $53.18$76.96
- Kanabec Countybase $59.39$93.24
Which county is in which insulator group
Every Minnesota county with a insulator rate. Counties DLI treats alike share one page; the rest have their own.
| Counties | Main classification | Base wage | Total rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Olmsted County group, 33 localities: Benton, Blue Earth, Brown, Cottonwood, Dodge, Douglas, Faribault, Fillmore, Freeborn, Houston, Jackson, Kanabec, Kandiyohi, Lyon, Martin, Meeker, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Mower, Nicollet, Olmsted, Pope, Redwood, Rice, Sherburne, Stearns, Steele, Swift, Todd, Wabasha, Waseca, Watonwan, Winona | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $59.39 | $93.24 |
| Hennepin County group, 13 localities: Anoka, Carver, Chisago, Dakota, Goodhue, Hennepin, Isanti, McLeod, Ramsey, Scott, Sibley, Washington, Wright | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $59.39 | $93.24 |
| Nobles County group, 7 localities: Big Stone, Chippewa, Grant, Lincoln, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $59.39 | $93.24 |
| Le Sueur County group, 2 localities: Lac qui Parle, Le Sueur | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $59.39 | $93.24 |
| Rock County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $57.24 | $89.19 |
| St. Louis County group, 12 localities: Aitkin, Beltrami, Carlton, Cass, Cook, Crow Wing, Hubbard, Itasca, Koochiching, Pine, St. Louis, Wadena | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $53.18 | $76.96 |
| Roseau County group, 4 localities: Clearwater, Lake, Lake of the Woods, Roseau | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $53.18 | $76.96 |
| Otter Tail County group, 5 localities: Becker, Mahnomen, Marshall, Otter Tail, Red Lake | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $29.89 | $49.90 |
| Pennington County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $29.89 | $49.90 |
| Polk County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $31.00 | $36.90 |
| Traverse County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $30.00 | $33.50 |
| Norman County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $27.00 | $29.70 |
| Renville County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $26.00 | $28.79 |
| Yellow Medicine County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $24.00 | $25.02 |
| Clay County group, 3 localities: Clay, Kittson, Stevens | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $24.00 | $24.60 |
| Wilkin County | HEATING AND FROST INSULATORS (701) | $24.00 | $24.60 |
8 groups of counties with identical DLI rates, and 8 counties with rates of their own.
More from DLI on this rate
- DLI's prevailing wage rates
- DLI lists journeyworker rates. Registered apprentices get their program's rate; "trainee" or "helper" titles are not substitutes (Minn. R. 5200.1070).
Every trade's rates, county by county: Aitkin · Beltrami · Carlton · Cass · Cook · Crow Wing · Hubbard · Itasca · Koochiching · Pine · St. Louis · Wadena
Are you being paid this rate?
Add your basic rate to what your employer pays into fringe plans for you, and compare it with the total. Contractors post the rates on site and give payroll copies to the contracting agency within 14 days of each pay period (Minn. Stat. 177.43). DLI Prevailing Wage: 651-284-5091.
Source
Department of Labor and Industry (DLI), DLI certifications of Nov 3 and Dec 22, 2025 (revised to Feb 9, 2026). For the row this page leads with:
- Aitkin: DLI-C-01-2025-12-22, page 8
- Beltrami: DLI-C-04-2025-12-22, page 36
- Carlton: DLI-C-09-2025-12-22, page 81
- Cass: DLI-C-11-2025-12-22, page 100
- Cook: DLI-C-16-2025-12-22, page 145
- Crow Wing: DLI-C-18-2025-12-22, page 163
- Hubbard: DLI-C-29-2025-12-22, page 264
- Itasca: DLI-C-31-2025-12-22, page 282
- Koochiching: DLI-C-36-2025-12-22, page 327
- Pine: DLI-C-58-2025-12-22, page 526
- St. Louis: DLI-C-69-2025-12-22, page 626
- Wadena: DLI-C-80-2025-12-22, page 728
We read DLI's consolidated commercial and highway/heavy PDFs line by line and check every number with a second, separate reader. Basic plus fringe equals DLI's printed total on every priced row. How we check · Download every Minnesota rate as CSV · Report an error