Father of an EY employee who died of “overwork”

Ernakulam (Kerala):

The death of young chartered accountant Anna Sebastin Perayil from Kerala, allegedly due to “overwork”, sparked a national debate on work-life balance, mental health and corporate responsibility. Her father, Sibi Joseph, said on Saturday that his daughter used to cry on the phone because she could not work amidst so much tension and stress.

Mr Joseph added that he asked her to resign and come back. He added that she, however, decided to continue because she said she was getting more attention at EY. Unfortunately, on July 21, she collapsed in her room and died before reaching the hospital.

“She was crying on the phone saying she could not work anymore with so much tension and stress. We asked her to resign and come back… She decided to continue because she said she would get more attention at EY. Unfortunately, on July 21, she collapsed in her room and died before reaching the hospital,” Joseph told ANI.

Mr. Joseph also said that his daughter had to work late into the night. She also did extra work that was not related to her job after she got back home. Joseph also claimed that his daughter had no time to sleep and eat and was stressed.

“She reached there on March 18… After a week, she started the regular exam. There are six audit teams in EY Pune and she was included in the sixth team. The assistant manager assigned the work and the audit manager checked her… She had to work late into the night… Even after she got back to her PG, she had to do extra work which was not related to her work… She had no time to sleep and eat. She was stressed and under work pressure,” he said.

“The manager did not check the work on time, he did it according to his schedule… He is a cricket fan and he changed his schedule according to the match schedule. And that’s why she had to stay longer to do the work assigned to her,” he said.

“Union Minister Suresh Gopi visited us today and said he will raise the issue in Parliament,” Mr Joseph said.

Today, Union Minister Suresh Gopi met the employee’s family members. After the meeting, Gopi told ANI that “the relevant authorities will be roped in” to analyse the situation.

“I have spoken to Anna’s family. From all the information I have been able to gather, I believe there is something there. The involvement of those responsible after her death was very unfair. I think this needs to be addressed. The relevant authorities will be roped in for this,” Mr Gopi told ANI.

Anna Sebastian Perayil, a Chartered Accountant (CA) from Kerala who had worked at EY’s Pune office for four months, died on July 20. The senior tax consultant issued a statement expressing deep sadness over the death.

The statement came after a heartbreaking letter from the victim’s mother went viral on social media, claiming that the work culture and excessive workload at EY contributed to her daughter’s death. In the letter, her mother detailed the victim’s struggles with anxiety, insomnia and stress due to an overwhelming workload, and cited instances where her manager prioritized work over employee wellbeing.

EY’s response acknowledged the victim’s short tenure with the company and expressed condolences to the grieving family.

EY said in response to the allegations: “We take the family’s correspondence with the utmost seriousness and humility. The wellbeing of all employees is our highest priority and we will continue to look for ways to improve the health of our 100,000 employees in EY member firms in India and provide them with a healthy workplace.”

The company assured that it had provided support to the family and would continue to do so.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)