The indigenous work culture that prevailed in India in the olden days was very different. The landlords did not allow those who lived at the bottom of society to do anything other than physical work. Jobs related to governance were given only based on the merits of caste. The majority of the basic population lived by working in the fields of the landowners. They, however, were often debtors to landlords for generations. So they were obliged to work without pay. The practice of taking advantage of the honesty and loyalty of the common man was generally prevalent. Although this began to change with the advent of the British, it was post-independence that a work culture that could be said to have belonged to India began to take shape here. This also had its own set of problems.

The worker was aware of his rights but was not sufficiently aware of his responsibilities. Moreover, many trade union organisations developed an attitude to see employers on the side of the enemy. It is the countries that have developed an attitude of working well that have developed. After globalization, there have been revolutionary changes in the work culture in India. Even working on fixed hours has become irrelevant. The growth of technology is bringing about unthinkable changes at work. Accordingly, there were also changes in the pressure that the work placed on the workers.

Any job comes through constant practice and effort. Many jobs seem to be tough in the beginning because of inexperience. This is why beginners were not given relatively hard jobs in their start in the old days. Everything has changed today. Today, in some areas, a person starts working with a very high salary. There is a growing trend of companies expecting more than the employees can handle from them. One of the victims of work stress is Anna Sebastian, a native of Vaikom, who died in cardiac arrest as she could not bear the stress of work. The Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment has said that an inquiry will be conducted into the death of Anna, who was working as a chartered accountant in a reputed firm called Ernst & Young. The issue gained social attention and led to a central probe after a complaint sent by Anna's mother to the company came to light through the national media.

Beginners will be less experienced and will not even have time to sleep if given an unaffordable workload. Managers of the departments should deal with this with discernment. The management of the company should be careful in ensuring the same. It must be assumed that neither of these occurred here. If an ongoing investigation finds lapses on the part of the company, the company should pay adequate compensation to Anna's family. Similarly, this incident also causes those who are scrambling after lakhs of rupees to think twice.