Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor met the parents of 26-year-old deceased Anna Sebastian Perayil. Working as a Chartered Accountant (CA) with Ernst & Young (EY), Anna died of a heart attack allegedly caused by work stress. Tharoor took to microblogging platform X, formerly Twitter where he said “Paid an emotional visit to the parents of EY India’s Anna Sebastian Perayil, who died of a heart attack at age 26 from overwork and intolerable stress & pressure from her managers.” Expressing his views on work pressure at companies, he said that “If a company needs 16-hour days and nights from its employees all the time, it needs to hire more people, not abuse the rights of those it recruits and exploits.”
Here’s what he said
Paid an emotional visit to the parents of EY India’s Anna Sebastian Perayil, who died of a heart attack at age 26 from overwork and intolerable stress & pressure from her managers.Discussed with her anguished parents the need for an inquiry and accountability, new laws and regulations to reform the toxic work culture of bottom-line-obsessed under-staffed establishments, & better training for mid-level managers. If a company needs 16-hour days and nights from its employees all the time, it needs to hire more people, not abuse the rights of those it recruits and exploits.
This is not the first time that Tharoor spoke on the issue. Earlier this month, he met Anna’s father Sibi Joseph who suggested Tharoor to raise the issue of legislating, through Parliament.
Here’s what he then said
Had a deeply emotional and heartrending conversation with Shri Sibi Joseph, the father of young Anna Sebastian, who passed away after a cardiac arrest, following four months of deeply stressful seven-day weeks of 14 hours a day at Ernst&Young. He suggested, and I agreed, that I raise the issue of legislating, through Parliament, a fixed calendar for all workplaces, whether in the private sector or the public, that would not exceed eight hours a day, five days a week. Inhumanity at the workplace must be legislated out of existence with stringent punishment and fines for offenders. Human rights do not stop at the workplace! Will raise this matter at the first opportunity during the next session of parliament.