"If A Company Needs 16 Hours...": Shashi Tharoor Visits EY Staff's Parents

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday met the parents of a 26-year-old employee at tax consultancy major Ernst&Young (EY), who allegedly died due to work pressure, and slammed the "toxic work culture".

Anna Sebastian Perayil, a chartered accountant (CA) from Kerala who worked at EY's Pune office for four months, died in July. A letter by her mother, Anita Augustine, to EY India Chairman Rajiv Memani, flagging the "glorification" of overwork at the multinational consulting firm, went viral this month.

Sharing pictures with her "anguished" parents during his "emotional" visit on X, Mr Tharoor said he discussed with them the need for an inquiry 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".

The Congress leader, who is a Member of Parliament from Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram, alleged that Anna died of a heart attack from "overwork and intolerable stress and pressure from her managers".

"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," he said.

Earlier last week, Shashi Tharoor spoke to Anna's father, Sibi Joseph, and suggested a 40-hour work week.

"He (Anna's father) suggested, and I agreed, that I raise the issue of legislating, through Parliament, a fixed calendar for all workplaces, whether in the private sector or the public, that would not exceed eight hours a day, five days a week," Mr Tharoor posted on X on September 20.

"Inhumanity at the workplace must be legislated out of existence with stringent punishment and fines for offenders. Human rights do not stop at the workplace," the Congress MP wrote.

He also said he would raise the matter at the "first opportunity" during the next session of Parliament, which is likely to be held in December.

"Told Her To Quit": EY Employee's Father

Anna Sebastian Perayil's father spoke to the media last week and said he had advised her to quit as she had to work through the night, till 12.30 am, at the EY India firm.

"We advised her to quit, but she insisted that this stint would provide valuable professional exposure," Mr Joseph said.

He also claimed the issue of extreme work pressure was mentioned before the senior officials of the EY, but no action was taken.

"She had complained to the assistant manager, but they insisted on working even at night," he said.

The family alleged that the company responded only after her mother's letter went viral.

"We are not planning to move legally, but we don't want anyone else to face the same fate. We don't want the newbies joining such corporate companies to face similar situations," Mr Joseph said.

Anna's mother, Ms Augustine, had also said in the letter that no one from the company had attended her funeral, which the family found deeply hurtful.

EY On Employee's Death

Amid a nationwide uproar, EY last week issued a statement saying it was deeply saddened by Anna Sebastian's "tragic and untimely" death.

It said it works with about 1,00,000 people at its member firms in India and that Anna had worked at one such firm -  SR Batliboi - for four months.

"Since the death, EY has been in touch with the family, helping them but it is only now that her family has chosen to write to the company, complaining about the "excessive workload", the accounting giant said.

The Union government has said it is investigating the circumstances that led to Anna's death.