Above: Minister Dr Esther Byer Suckoo (BGIS Photo)

Occupational safety and health and the environment are inextricably linked, according to Barbados Minister of Labour and Social Security Dr Esther Byer Suckoo.

Good and bad practices in either area will have a corresponding negative or positive impact on the other, she said.

“This link can sometimes be lost on persons, but it is well recognised that the two concerns and concepts are inextricably tied up with each other,” she said.

She gave the recent BP Gulf of Mexico as an example.

“More than a year later, the human and environmental health effects of that disaster continue to be felt and will be felt for years to come,” she said.

Dr Suckoo said the government was looking to generated heightened sensitisation among small and medium-sized businesses of the importance of occupational safety, health and environmental matters.