Labour Ministry to probe death of 26-year old EY professional

New Delhi/Bengaluru: TMC MP Saket Gokhale on Thursday called for toxic work practices to stop immediately in response to the recent death of an employee at the firm EY due to overworking.

The Union Ministry of Labour and Employment on Thursday ordered a probe into the death of a young woman professional employed with Ernst and Young (EY) allegedly due to "unsafe and exploitative work" environment.

Minister of State for Labour Shobha Karandlaje said she was "deeply saddened by the tragic loss" of Anna Sebastain Perayil, a 26-year-old Kochi resident who was working in Pune.

The incident came to light when Anna's mother Anita wrote a strongly-worded letter to the firm claiming that her daughter died due to "excessive work pressure" on July 20. The company responded to her saying they would review the matter and that they would like to meet the family.

Former minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said her death was "very sad but also disturbing at many levels" and requested Union Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and Karandlaje to investigate the allegations made by the mother.

On Thursday, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh said Anna's death and her mother's "emotional" letter has shaken the youth of the country.

"A balanced ratio of 'work-life balance' is a standard for the development of any country...From the government of the country to the corporate world, everyone should take this letter as a warning and advice. If the working conditions and circumstances are not favourable, then how will the performance and results be favourable?" he wrote on 'X'.

"The truth is that the way there is unemployment and work and business have fallen prey to recession and declining demand due to the wrong policies of the government and excessive taxes, there is tremendous pressure on the business moving towards loss to get maximum work done from minimum employees. From top to bottom, every employee is under pressure from each other. If seen in a larger context, the main reason for this pressure and tension is the failure of economic policies," he said.

Demanding an investigation, Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale said the country has sufficient laws for the protection of employees from unfair practices, being underpaid and being made to work additional hours. "Problem is that the government, which is responsible for enforcing these laws, turns a blind eye when rich corporates and MNCs are involved," he said.

EY's response

Responding to queries sent by DH, EY said that they are taking the family’s correspondence with the utmost seriousness and humility. 

“We place the highest importance on the well-being of all employees and will continue to find ways to improve and provide a healthy workplace for our 1,00,000 people across EY member firms in India," the company said in a statement.

“Anna was a part of the Audit team at S R Batliboi, a member firm of EY Global, in Pune for a brief period of four months, joining the firm on 18 March 2024. That her promising career was cut short in this tragic manner is an irreparable loss for all of us,” it said.

In the light of this incident, the multinational firm has also internally communicated to its employees to bring into notice any work-related issues on an existing link, meant for addressing such issues, sources told DH. 

There were reports quoting EY India Chairman Rajiv Memani that Anna’s death was not due to work pressure. However, a company spokesperson said that Memani had been misquoted.

Meanwhile, IT workers union Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES) submitted letters to both the Ministry of Labour and Employment, as well as the Ministry of Home Affairs, demanding an independent and thorough investigation in the case.