Mannat Saini, Pune
Anna Sebastian Perayil, a 26-year-old employee at the multinational consulting firm Ernst and Young (EY) based in Pune died due to an “overwhelming workload,” as claimed by her mother in a letter written to EY India Chairman Rajiv Memani.
In a letter penned by her mother, Anita Augustine, claims that the job at Ernst and Young (EY) was her daughter’s first job ever and thus she was excited about the opportunity. However, in a series of allegations, she claims that within four months of joining the company, Anna succumbed to “excessive workload.”
The letter details that Anna often used to work till late at night and even on weekends, forcing her to return late to her accommodation. When Anna did return, she would collapse into the bed, without even changing her clothes due to the extreme exhaustion. Her mother expressed that she was being wrongly burdened with “back-breaking work” as a newcomer who was expected to accept the work culture in the plight of hard work.
In the heartbreaking letter, Anita claims that despite high regard for human rights within company policy, no one from the company stepped forward to attend Anna’s funeral. Anna’s mother describes that Anna had been a dedicated, star student throughout school and college, even passing her chartered accountant exams with a distinction. Anna’s mother describes her child as a determined young individual who was excited to be working towards financial freedom, buying the parents their plane tickets to attend her convocation. They did not anticipate that the workload would take a toll on their daughter within a span of four months, from March of 2024 when she had joined the company. The unhealthy amount of pressure, however, paired with the new environment and long hours was emotionally, physically, and mentally taxing.
Her mother describes that the team Anna was a part of, was known to have previous employees quitting due to the extreme and excessive workload. In Anna’s case, the manager of the team would go so far as to hearten the newcomer to “change everyone’s opinion about our team.” Her letter claims that the manager did not maintain professionalism, often assigning tasks to Anna at the end of her shift. This would often force her to work till late hours in the night. The manager would also reschedule meetings often and assign additional tasks that were not part of her job profile in a verbal format. The company and the management staff were inconsiderate of the fact that Anna was a new employee who had moved away from home, struggling in a place where she was not familiar with the language, culture, and people.
While Anna was encouraged to take on this new role in her life, her mother claimed that her daughter would end up paying with her life. Her mother claims that no one from Ernst and Young (EY) attended Anna’s funeral even after reaching out to them. She asserts that Anna’s demise should serve as a wake-up call to the unhealthy work culture at Ernst and Young (EY).