EY employee’s death: Ajit Pawar says rising cases of young people dying due to stress needs attention

Ajit Pawar. File
| Photo Credit: PTI

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has raised the cases of “young people dying due to stress”, referring to the death of a 26-year-old Ernst & Young employee in Pune, allegedly because of extreme work pressure.

Mr. Pawar, who is the Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, said in a post on X on Thursday (September 19, 2024) that he was saddened to learn about the death of the EY employee “due to stress”.

“The rising cases of young people dying due to stress need our attention. I hope Ernst & Young India will take corrective steps,” Mr. Pawar said.

Anna Sebastian Perayil, who passed her CA exams in 2023, worked at the EY Pune office for four months before she died. Her mother this month wrote to EY India chairman Rajiv Memani flagging the “glorification” of overwork at the multinational consulting firm.

The Ministry of Labour & Employment on Thursday (September 19, 2024) said it is investigating the alleged “unsafe and exploitative work environment”.

The woman’s father Siby Joseph spoke to the media on Thursday (September 19, 2024) and said his daughter had to work through the night till 12.30 a.m. “We advised her to quit, but she insisted that this stint would provide valuable professional exposure,” he said.

He said the issue of extreme work pressure was mentioned before the senior officials of the company, but no action was taken.

After the matter went viral on social media, EY on Wednesday (September 18, 2024) issued a statement saying it was deeply saddened by Anna Sebastian’s tragic and untimely passing in July 2024.

EY said it would continue to improve and provide a healthy workplace in its offices throughout the country.