EY employee anna Sebastian’s mother blames ‘overwork’ for her daughter’s death
A massive outrage happened after the death of Anna Sebastian, a 26-year-old chartered accountant working in S R Batliboi, a member firm of EY (Ernest and Young) Global.
The employee had joined the audit and assurance team in Pune in March and allegedly died after four months, on July 20.
Her mother penned a letter to the EY India chairman, demanding better working conditions for employees. The union labor ministry has taken the complaint and said that they will start an investigation regarding Anna Sebastian’s death.
“Deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Anna Sebastian Perayil. A thorough investigation into the allegations of an unsafe and exploitative work environment is underway. We are committed to ensuring justice & @LabourMinistry has officially taken up the complaint. @mansukhmandviya,” Ministry of State for Labor Shobha Karandlaje posted on X.
She was responding to the post of BJP leader, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, who posted on X
“This is very sad but also disturbing at many levels.
I rqst Govt of India @mansukhmandviya @ShobhaBJP to investigate these allegations made by the mother of unsafe and exploitative work environment that claimed the life of young, full of future Anna Sebastian Perayil”
Anna Sebastian Perayil’s mother’s letter:
In the letter to EY India chairman Rajiv Memani, Anita Augustine wrote that her daughter died four months after joining the office. She talked about the overworked work culture in the firm and called for it to change.
“EY was her first job, and she was thrilled to be part of such a prestigious company. But four months later, on July 20th, 2024, my world collapsed when I received the devastating news that Anna had passed away. She was just 26 years old.” she wrote.
“Anna would return to her room utterly exhausted, sometimes collapsing on the bed without even changing her clothes, only to be bombarded with messages asking for more reports. She was putting in her best efforts, working very hard to meet the deadlines. She was a fighter to the core, not someone to give up easily. We told her to quit, but she wanted to learn and gain new exposure. However, the overwhelming pressure proved too much even for her,” she explained.
Her mother expressed grief that no one attended her funeral.
“No one from EY attended Anna’s funeral. This absence at such a critical moment, for an employee who gave her all to your organization until her last breath, is deeply hurtful. Anna deserved better, and so do all the employees who continue to work under these conditions,”.
Earnest and young India said:
In response, the EY sent an internal email expressing their grievances and condolences to the family to EY staff, which later got leaked.
“We are deeply saddened by Anna Sebastian’s tragic and untimely passing in July 2024, and our deepest condolences go to the bereaved family. 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. While no measure can compensate for the loss experienced by the family, we have provided all the assistance as we always do in such times of distress and will continue to do so,” the letter says.
“We 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 wrote.
The letter claims to have various wellness programs and communication channels available for employees, such as speak-up forums and an ethics hotline.
He suggested his employees reach out to team leaders or other support networks within the firm.
“I would like to make this an ongoing dialogue with you to ensure we are continually building a healthy workplace for everyone,” he wrote.
