GHS labels for chemical containers: what OSHA and Minnesota require

Two kinds of labels, two sets of rules

OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard, 29 CFR 1910.1200(f), treats the label a chemical ships with differently from the label an employer puts on containers inside the workplace. Most shops only ever make the second kind.

Workplace labels must be legible, in English and prominently displayed; other languages can be added. And an incoming label stays on: you may not remove or deface it unless you immediately re-mark the container.

The six parts of a full GHS label

• Product identifier

  The name or number that ties the container to its safety data sheet.

• Signal word

  “Danger” for the more severe hazards, “Warning” for the less severe.

• Hazard statements

  Fixed phrases for each hazard class, such as “Causes severe skin burns and eye damage.”

• Pictograms

  A black symbol on a white background inside a red diamond border.

• Precautionary statements

  What to do and avoid: handling, storage, first aid, disposal.

• Supplier identification

  Name, U.S. address and U.S. phone number of the manufacturer, importer or other responsible party.

The red border is not a style choice. OSHA’s Appendix C requires a red frame on pictograms for shipped containers, and OSHA has said single-color pictograms are only allowed on safety data sheets and on workplace, in-house labels.

The nine pictograms

Workplace labels: the simpler option most shops use

For a spray bottle filled from a drum, OSHA lets the employer use the product identifier plus words, pictures or symbols that give at least general hazard information, as long as the safety data sheet and training fill in the specifics. “Degreaser, solvent blend. Flammable. Skin and eye irritant. See SDS.” is the idea.

Two cases need no label at all: a portable container filled from a labeled one for the immediate use of the person who filled it, and stationary containers like tanks, which may use signs, placards or batch tickets instead. A bottle that sits on a shelf overnight, or gets handed to someone else, needs a label.

Free template: our workplace chemical label template (PDF) prints six 4 × 3 inch labels on a letter sheet, with a line for the product identifier, checkboxes for common hazard words, and a reminder to see the SDS. It is for in-house containers only, not for anything you ship.

What Minnesota adds: Employee Right-to-Know

Minnesota OSHA enforces the federal standard, and Minnesota’s Employee Right-to-Know rules, Minnesota Rules chapter 5206, add labeling requirements of their own.

• Harmful physical agents

  Equipment or a work area that generates a harmful physical agent at a level that may approximate or exceed the permissible exposure limit or action level must be labeled with the name of the agent and the hazard warning (Minnesota Rules 5206.1100). The state’s list starts with heat, noise and ionizing radiation, so a loud machine or a hot process area can need a label even with no chemical in sight.

• Original containers

  Original shipping containers must carry the substance’s identity, the hazard warning, and the name and address of the manufacturer or other responsible party (5206.1000), alongside the federal label.

Sizes and materials that survive the shop

OSHA sets no minimum label size; the test is legible and prominently displayed. As starting points, not rules: about 3 × 4 inches on a quart spray bottle, 4 × 6 on a gallon jug, 6 × 8 or larger on a 5 gallon pail. Our label size calculator works out a wrap for any container.

Material matters more than size. Paper labels lift and smear the first time solvent drips down the side. For chemical containers we use synthetic label stock with a protective laminate, and the sticker and label material picker walks through the options. Pre-printed labels for the products you refill every week save writing them by hand, and roll labels make sense if you fill on a line. See labels for what we make.

One plain reminder: your hazard communication program, safety data sheets and training decide what goes on a label; we print it. Nothing here is legal advice. OSHA and Minnesota OSHA are the authorities.