How do you classify a school employee applying a general use pesticide to the school?

• A. Commercial applicator for hire
• B. Commercial applicator not for hire
• C. Private commercial applicator
• D. Public sector applicator

Answer: (B)

The key idea is who benefits from the pesticide work and who the applicator works for. When a school employee applies a general-use pesticide to the school, the work is performed on the employer’s property (the school) as part of the employee’s duties. The employee is paid by the school district, and the pest control is for the school's own site, not for an external client. That makes the person a commercial applicator, but not hired by a third party to do pest control—so they’re classified as a commercial applicator not for hire.

This fits the idea that public sector work would involve applying pesticides for a government agency on government property, but the labeling used here emphasizes the not-for-hire status due to the employer–employee relationship on the school’s property.