Shashi Tharoor meets parents of EY India employee;

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor meet parents of EY employee; discussed the need for an enquiry

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor met with the parents of a 26-year-old Ernst & Young (EY) employee who passed away from a heart attack, reportedly caused by an overwhelming workload, on Wednesday. The Congress leader talked to the parents about the importance of investigating, holding people responsible, and creating new laws to address the toxic work environment.

Anna Sebastian Perayil, a Chartered Accountant working at EY, passed away on July 20 in Pune, where she was based, although she was originally from Kerala. The recent incident sparked widespread shock and anger after a letter from Anna’s mother to the EY CEO revealed the harsh working environment their daughter had faced.

“Paid an emotional visit to the parents of EY India’s Anna Sebastian Perayil, who died of a heart attack at age 26 from overwork and intolerable stress and pressure from her managers. Discussed with her anguished parents the need for an enquiry and accountability, new laws and regulations to reform the toxic work culture of bottom-line-obsessed under-staffed establishments, and better training for mid-level managers,” Tharoor wrote.

Also read: Labour officials inspect EY’s Pune branch after employee’s death sparks row

The Congress MP further stressed, “If a company needs 16-hour days and nights from its employees all the time, it needs to hire more people, not abuse the rights of those it recruits and exploits”.

On September 20, Tharoor spoke with Anna’s father, Sibi Joseph, who proposed and Tharoor accepted to bring up the topic in Parliament of establishing a standard work hours policy for all types of workplaces. The suggested bill aims to guarantee that the number of work hours does not go over eight hours per day, for five days each week.

Also read: EY India employee’s death sparks debate about ‘Hustle Culture’

The parents of Anna, who raised concerns about the issue, claimed that she was given too much work that she couldn’t even rest or have proper meals. In a heart-wrenching letter to EY India Chairman Rajiv Memani, Anna’s mother, Anita Augustine, stated that “No one from EY even showed up at her funeral.”

However, Memani argued that Anna was given tasks just like all other workers and denied the accusations of excessive work. The company emphasized in a statement that it would implement actions to deal with pressure in the workplace.