EY India head Rajiv Memani on why no one from company attended Anna Sebastian Perayil's funeral

Rajiv Memani took to LinkedIn to share a note on the death on 26-year-old employee of EY Pune.

The tragic death of 26-year-old Anna Sebastian Perayil, a CA for EY Pune, has left people shocked and ignited a heated discussion about toxic workplaces. The incident came to light when Anna’s mother, Anita Augustine, wrote a heart-wrenching letter to Rajiv Memani, Chairman and Managing Partner - EY India, about her daughter being “stressed” and “exhausted” from overwork. She claimed that these led to her daughter’s untimely demise and added that no one from EY attended her funeral. Memani, in an earlier post, denied the allegations of workload being the reason behind her death. He has again taken to social media to address the letter he received from the grieving mother and why no one from the company went to Anna’s funeral.

Rajiv Memani shared a post on LinkedIn about the 26-year-old employee's death. (File Photo)

“Many of you will be aware of the tragic demise of Anna Sebastian, a young woman who worked in our Pune office, and the anguished letter her mother, Ms Anita Augustine wrote to me,” Memani wrote in a LinkedIn post, adding that he is “deeply saddened” by the incident. He further said that as a father himself, he can only imagine the pain Anna’s mother is experiencing.

Why did no one attend the funeral?

Addressing this incident, Memani wrote, “I truly regret the fact that we missed being present at Anna’s funeral. This is completely alien to our culture. It has never happened before; it will never happen again.”

He further discussed the social media posts slamming EY’s work practices and claimed that it is very important for the company to “create a healthy workplace.”

“I am absolutely committed to nurturing a harmonious workplace, and I will not rest until that objective is accomplished,” he added in the post’s concluding lines.

Take a look at the entire post here:

What did social media users say?

Rajiv Memani's post didn't sit well with the LinkedIn users, and they didn't hold back while expressing their reactions.

An individual wrote, "Sir, your words written here and action on the ground regarding harmonious workplace, never matches and will never match."

Another person, claiming to be a parent of an ex-EY employee, posted, "My son went through this nonsense years back. I was more fortunate. He left after two years but was completely burnt out. As parents, we worried about whether he would return to work. It took him six months, but the memories don't go away. I remember being upset but never speaking up, as he wouldn't let me. You owe an apology to one and all who worked with this rotten organisation."

"Working in such organisations reminded us of the ancient bounded labourers who were bound to work for masters since birth irrespective of work type or environment. Labour ministry should intervene in this, or these incidents will continue to happen," demanded a third.

Centre takes up complaint:

Union Minister of State Shobha Karandlaje said that the labour ministry has taken up the complaint regarding the death of a 26-year-old employee of EY Pune and is investigating the matter.

“Deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Anna Sebastian Perayil. A thorough investigation into the allegations of an unsafe and exploitative work environment is underway. We are committed to ensuring justice & @LabourMinistry has officially taken up the complaint,” the union minister confirmed on an X post.

Anna Sebastian Perayil worked for EY Pune for four months before her demise. "Anna was a part of the Audit team at S R 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 EY said in the statement.

Earlier, responding to Anna Sebastian Perayil's death, Rajiv Memani said, “We don’t believe that work pressure could have claimed her life.”