New Delhi [India], September 21 : Leader of Opposition and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday offered his sympathies to the family members of a 26-year-old EY employee who reportedly died of "work-related stress" and assured them that he would fight for the cause of improving working conditions for the millions of professionals in India.
The Congress leader also issued instructions to create an awareness movement in Anna's memory for all working professionals in India.
Following Gandhi's instructions, the All India Professionals Congress (AIPC) will announce a helpline soon to collect information from corporate professionals about issues related to work stress and toxic work culture.
According to an official statement, "Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi spoke to the parents of Anna Sebastian today via a video call arranged by the Chairman of All India Professionals' Congress Praveen Chakravarty during his visit to their home in Kochi."
"Rahul Gandhi offered his sympathies at Anna's sudden and tragic demise. Further, he lauded the family's courage and selflessness to speak up at this extremely difficult moment about this issue in the larger interest of improving working conditions for the millions of professionals in India," said the statement.
"Rahul Gandhi assured them that he would personally fight for this cause in his capacity as the Leader of the Opposition. He instructed the AIPC Chairman to create an awareness movement in Anna's memory for all working professionals in India," said the official statement.
"Following Gandhi's instructions, AIPC will announce a helpline soon to collect information from corporate professionals about issues related to work stress and toxic work culture. Post this, AIPC will seek to come up with draft guidelines for better working conditions for professionals in the corporate sector," it added.
Meanwhile, Anna Sebastian Perayil' father Sibi Joseph said he has been assured by MP Suresh Gopi that the matter would be raised in Parliament.
"She used to cry on the phone that she could not work with so much tension and stress. We asked her to resign and come back... She decided to continue because she said that she was getting more exposure in EY. Unfortunately, on July 21, she collapsed in her room and died before reaching the hospital... Union Minister Suresh Gopi visited us today and said that he will raise the issue in the Parliament," he said.
Anna Sebastian Perayil, a chartered accountant (CA) from Kerala who worked at EY's Pune office for four months, died on July 20. The tax consultancy major issued a statement expressing deep sadness over the death. The statement comes after a heartbreaking letter written by the victim's mother went viral on social media, alleging that EY's work culture and excessive workload contributed to her daughter's demise
EY stated, "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."
The firm assured that it has provided assistance to the family and will continue to do so.
The death of Anna Sebastian Perayil reportedly due to 'overwork'has sparked a nationwide debate on work-life balance, mental health, and corporate accountability with Mental health specialists urging employers to recognise the fact that workers are human beings and not machines.