IT employee union Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES) has called for an “independent and thorough investigation” into the death of the 26-year-old Anna Sebastian Perayil, a chartered accountant who worked at Ernst & Young (EY).

The union has formally submitted letters to both the Ministry of Labour and Employment, as well as the Ministry of Home Affairs for the same, NITES said in a statement.

NITES has called upon both ministries to thoroughly investigate the circumstances surrounding her death and hold those responsible accountable.

The demise of Anna Sebastian Perayil on July 20, four months after joining her first job at global advisory and accounting firm EY in Pune, has sparked a debate on social media about toxic work cultures at corporate organisations.

The debate was triggered a few days back after a letter from Perayil’s mother, Anita Augustine, went viral in which she addressed EY India chairman Rajiv Memani and blamed “the workload, new environment, and long hours” for her daughter’s tragic death.

“The young employee, driven to such a devastating step due to immense work pressure, tragically lost her life, and no representatives from the company attended her funeral. This shocking disregard for employee welfare and basic human dignity raises urgent questions about the toxic work culture within certain corporate environments,” Harpreet Singh Saluja, president of NITES, said in the statement.

Saluja said, “We believe this investigation is crucial to ensuring such tragedies are not repeated, and that employees across the IT, finance, and corporate sectors are protected from hazardous working conditions.”The issue is also being taken up in the Parliament, as Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) Saket Gokhale said that he has formally written to the Labour Secretary of Maharashtra demanding an urgent investigation be launched into the working conditions at EY which allegedly led to the death of Perayil.

“Clearly, there is a prevalent practise at these accounting and consultancy firms of employees being made to overwork beyond regular hours, subjected to humiliation, being underpaid for their work, as well as having to suffer toxic high-pressure work environment. The death of Ms. Periyal is indicative of the sheer oppressive practices that are prevalent at several such multi-national private corporate firms…This is UNACCEPTABLE! We have sufficient laws in our country for the protection of employees from unfair practices, being underpaid, & being made to work additional hours. Problem is that the govt, which is responsible for enforcing these laws, turns a blind eye when rich corporates & MNCs are involved,” Gokhale said in the statement.

Meanwhile, EY, one of the “Big Fours” globally, has issued a statement on Periyal’s untimely demise. “Anna was a part of the Audit team at SR 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,” the company said.

EY further added, “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 100,000 people across EY member firms in India.”

IT employee union Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES) has called for an “independent and thorough investigation” into the death of the 26-year-old Anna Sebastian Perayil, a chartered accountant who worked at Ernst & Young (EY).

The union has formally submitted letters to both the Ministry of Labour and Employment, as well as the Ministry of Home Affairs for the same, NITES said in a statement.

NITES has called upon both ministries to thoroughly investigate the circumstances surrounding her death and hold those responsible accountable.

The demise of Anna Sebastian Perayil on July 20, four months after joining her first job at global advisory and accounting firm EY in Pune, has sparked a debate on social media about toxic work cultures at corporate organisations.

The debate was triggered a few days back after a letter from Perayil’s mother, Anita Augustine, went viral in which she addressed EY India chairman Rajiv Memani and blamed “the workload, new environment, and long hours” for her daughter’s tragic death.

“The young employee, driven to such a devastating step due to immense work pressure, tragically lost her life, and no representatives from the company attended her funeral. This shocking disregard for employee welfare and basic human dignity raises urgent questions about the toxic work culture within certain corporate environments,” Harpreet Singh Saluja, president of NITES, said in the statement.

Saluja said, “We believe this investigation is crucial to ensuring such tragedies are not repeated, and that employees across the IT, finance, and corporate sectors are protected from hazardous working conditions.”The issue is also being taken up in the Parliament, as Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) Saket Gokhale said that he has formally written to the Labour Secretary of Maharashtra demanding an urgent investigation be launched into the working conditions at EY which allegedly led to the death of Perayil.

“Clearly, there is a prevalent practise at these accounting and consultancy firms of employees being made to overwork beyond regular hours, subjected to humiliation, being underpaid for their work, as well as having to suffer toxic high-pressure work environment. The death of Ms. Periyal is indicative of the sheer oppressive practices that are prevalent at several such multi-national private corporate firms…This is UNACCEPTABLE! We have sufficient laws in our country for the protection of employees from unfair practices, being underpaid, & being made to work additional hours. Problem is that the govt, which is responsible for enforcing these laws, turns a blind eye when rich corporates & MNCs are involved,” Gokhale said in the statement.

Meanwhile, EY, one of the “Big Fours” globally, has issued a statement on Periyal’s untimely demise. “Anna was a part of the Audit team at SR 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,” the company said.

EY further added, “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 100,000 people across EY member firms in India.”