EY employee's death: No other parent should have to endure this pain, laments father

The tragic death of Anna Sebastian Perayil, a 26-year-old employee at EY India’s Pune office, has shone a spotlight on the growing concerns over the toxic hustle culture in the corporate world and its impact on employee well-being.

“No other parent should have to endure this kind of pain. No one else should be treated this way,” says Anna’s grieving father, Sibi Joseph Perayil in a conversation with The Federal.

A retired bureaucrat who served as the additional secretary of agriculture in the Kerala government, Sibi Joseph cannot forgive the multinational for not even showing up at the last rites of someone who literally gave her life for the company within four months of joining.

The father laments

“No one from Pune, not even any of her colleagues nor the top officials of EY bothered to attend the funeral. We lost our daughter, and no other parent should have to endure this kind of pain. No one else should be treated this way,” said an emotionally-wrecked Sibi Joseph.

“Her mother sent the letter to the chairman and five top officials of EY last week. We didn’t intend for it to be made public nor do we intend to file an official complaint or initiate legal procedure. Someone from the recipient list must have leaked it to social media,” Sibi Joseph went on. “However, we’ve heard that they are planning an internal inquiry and follow-up, we do not know for sure.”

First hint of crisis

According to the father, he and his wife were in Pune, where she worked, for her convocation on July 7. “That’s when we discovered she wasn’t feeling well. The doctor we consulted, a cardiologist, after conducting all the tests, including an ECG, assured us she was fine. He said her only issue was the need to find a way to get proper sleep," he shared.

“She was otherwise very healthy and would often join me for morning jogs when she was home. She didn’t want to quit her job because she believed her time at EY was crucial for her CV,” added Sibi Joseph. EY is one of the world’s leading accounting and advisory services firms.

The unfortunate death

On July 20, while picking up food from a Swiggy delivery man Anna suddenly vomited and fainted. Her housemates rushed her to the hospital but she could not be revived, he added.

In a heart-wrenching letter to EY India chairman Rajiv Memani, Anna’s mother Anita Augustine, a former bank officer based in Kochi, shared her daughter’s story, pleading for urgent reforms to address the systemic issues that has led to their devastating loss.

Anna, a university rank holder in accountancy and an ambitious young woman, joined EY India in March 2024 as an executive, fresh off her chartered accountancy exams. However, just four months into her career, Anna passed away, leaving her family and loved ones in a state of profound grief and disbelief.

EY statement: Deeply saddened by Anna’s death

Weeks after the young woman’s death and under tremendous scrutiny globally, the company admitted it was taking the grieving family’s concerns seriously.

In a statement, the accounting and advisory services firm said: “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."

"We are deeply saddened by Anna Sebastian's tragic and untimely passing… and our deepest condolences go to the bereaved family… That her promising career was cut short in this tragic manner is an irreparable loss for all of us," read the statement.

Hinting at possible changes to create a rather conducive workplace environment, EY said: “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.”

EY chairman says no work pressure

Meanwhile, in another statement, EY Rajiv Memani denied the allegations that work pressure killed her, saying she had worked with them for four months. According to the company, Anna was given regular assignments like other employees.

Letter shakes corporate world

Meanwhile, in her letter which went viral on social media, Anita Augustine narrated her daughter’s final days, describing how the relentless workload, long hours and immense pressure took a severe toll on Anna’s physical, emotional and mental health.

Despite experiencing symptoms of anxiety, sleeplessness and stress, Anna pushed herself to the limit, believing that hard work and perseverance were the keys to success.

The letter reveals that Anna’s team at EY had a history of high employee turnover due to the excessive workload.

A cruel manager

“When Anna joined this specific team, she was told that many employees had resigned due to the excessive workload, and the team manager told to (her), that she must stick around and change everyone’s opinion about (their) team. My child didn’t realise she would pay for that with her life."

Further, the letter read, “Her manager would often reschedule meetings during cricket matches and assign her work at the end of the day, adding to her stress. At an office party, a senior leader even joked that she would have a tough time working under her manager, which, unfortunately, became a reality she could not escape."

When Anna joined, her manager explicitly asked her to “stick around and change everyone’s opinion about our team”. Tragically, this request would ultimately cost Anna her life.

Relentless work at EY

Anita Augustine details how Anna’s managers would often assign her additional tasks verbally, beyond her official workload, leaving her with barely any time to rest or recover. She would return to her room utterly exhausted, sometimes collapsing on the bed without even changing her clothes, only to be bombarded with more messages asking for reports.

The letter also mentions an incident where Anna’s assistant manager called her at night with a task that needed to be completed by the next morning, leaving her with barely any time to rest or recover. When she voiced her concerns, she was met with the dismissive response. 'You can work at night; that’s what we all do'.

Anita Augustine emphasises that her daughter was too kind to blame her managers, but as a grieving mother, she cannot remain silent. She questions how EY can justify burdening newcomers with such backbreaking work, making them work day and night, even on Sundays.

Parent of ex-employee empathises

Talking to The Federal, Prabhakaran (name changed), a family member of an ex-EY employee, admitted that he could easily relate to what Anna "must have undergone."

He said, "My son quit the same company last year after having undergone a horrible time in Bengaluru. From what I heard from him, it's mostly the managers who make life miserable for most employees, not the company per se. But the company cannot wash its hands of its responsibility. There should be enough checks and balances, and quite ironically, even the government seems to support such big companies by permitting extended hours like 12-hour shifts."

Further, he added, "Interestingly, EY has a different policy in other countries such as the US, where the work atmosphere is much better. That is why most prefer to fly out, given an opportunity. There are days my son spent up to 40 hours in the office, and this seems like a norm in many top companies in India."

EY’s inhuman conduct

The letter penned by Anna's mother also highlights the lack of empathy shown by EY towards Anna’s family after her death. No one from the company attended Anna’s funeral, which Anita Augustine described as “deeply hurtful”.

She reached out to Anna’s managers after the funeral but received no reply, leaving her questioning how a company that speaks of values and human rights fail to show up for one of its own in their final moments.

Anita Augustine’s letter serves as a wake-up call for EY and the corporate world at large. She has emphasised that Anna’s experience sheds light on a work culture that seems to glorify overwork while neglecting the well-being of its employees.

Mother’s plea to EY

She has urged EY to reflect on its work culture and take meaningful steps to prioritize the health and wellness of its employees, creating an environment where they feel safe to speak up and where their mental and physical well-being is not sacrificed for the sake of productivity.

“This is a systemic issue that goes beyond individual managers or teams. The relentless demands and the pressure to meet unrealistic expectations are not sustainable, and they cost us the life of a young woman with so much potential," Anita Augustine wrote in the letter, sparking a much-needed conversation about the need for reform in corporate work culture.