• The employer is not required to label portable containers where hazardous chemicals are transferred from labeled containers, and which are for immediate use.
• Just because a container is small does not mean it is exempt from a label.

Portable containers

The employer is not required to label portable containers into which hazardous chemicals are transferred from labeled containers, and which are intended only for the immediate use of the employee who performs the transfer. “Immediate use” means that the hazardous chemical will be under the control of and used only by the person who transfers it from a labeled container and only within the work shift in which it is transferred.

Problems arise when the shift ends and there is material left in the portable container, or if another employee needs to use the container/substance. Before the chemical can be passed along to another employee, the container must be properly labeled.

Quality control samples taken in a plant must be labeled, tagged, or marked unless the person taking the sample is also going to be performing the analysis, as the sample would then fall under the portable container exemption.

Small containers

There are no exemptions from labeling due to the size of the container. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says labeling can be done with pull-out labels, fold-back labels, tags or other methods.

OSHA has granted the following practical accommodation for small container labels where manufacturers can show that it is not feasible to use pull-out labels, fold-back labels, or tags, containing the full HazCom standard (HCS)-required information:

• The shipped small container (i.e., the actual container holding the hazardous chemical), at a minimum, must contain the following:
  • Product identifier
  • Appropriate pictogram(s)
  • Signal word
  • Manufacturer’s name and phone number
  • A statement indicating the full label information for the chemical is provided on the outside package.
• The outside packaging, at a minimum, must comply with the following:
  • All the applicable label elements, as defined in 1910.1200(f)(1).
  • The outside packaging described above is the object (e.g., bag, box) that the immediate product container is placed into; it does not refer to the exterior shipping container.
  • The outside package must be clearly marked to ensure the complete label elements are visible, and it must clearly inform users that the small container must be stored in the outer container bearing the complete label. The complete label must be maintained on the outer package (e.g., not torn, defaced, destroyed).
  • The manufacturer must ensure that any alternative labeling used does not conflict with any other standards. As such, the external packaging must not present a hazard while the material is being stored (e.g., combustible material being stored in a flammable locker).

However, OSHA does not consider an increase in cost for the use of tags, fold-back labels, or pull-out labels an acceptable reason to use this practical accommodation.