EY employee’s death: “Workers are humans not machines”, says psychiatrist

New Delhi [India], September 21 (ANI): As the death of an EY employee allegedly due to ‘overwork’ sparked a nationwide debate on work-life balance, mental health, and corporate accountability, a psychiatrist at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital urged employers to recognise the fact that workers are human beings and not machines.

Psychiatrist Rajiv Mehta has also advised the employees to be assertive with the “too demanding” employers.

“All the stress that is occurring due to professional reasons or work reasons is called work stress. The symptoms are decreased interest, sadness, irritability, forgetfulness, helplessness, hopelessness, death wishes, suicidal attempts, sometimes there are anxiety symptoms as well,” Mehta told ANI.

He said that one should not make their job as be-all and end-all of one’s life.

“Life requires family, friends, and vacation. Work stress can also happen because of your ambitions. Be ambitious but don’t be too quick for it. Have some patience. Work stress can also happen because of the employers. Employers are too much demanding. You have to be assertive with employers. Employers need to understand that workers are human beings and not machines,” Mehta 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 heart-wrenching 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.

In the letter, her mother detailed the victim’s struggles with anxiety, sleeplessness, and stress due to an overwhelming workload, citing instances where her manager prioritised work over employee well-being.

EY’s response acknowledged the victim’s brief tenure at the firm and expressed condolences to the bereaved family.

Regarding the allegations, 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.