Family of EY employee who died in Sydney fall breaks silence with heartbreaking poem

A heartbroken relative of the woman who died after jumping from a balcony at her Sydney office has paid tribute to her loved one with a heartfelt poem.

The 27-year-old Ernst & Young employee fell from an outdoor terrace on the building’s 10th floor onto a glass awning at its entrance around 12:30 a.m. Saturday.

A person claiming to be related to the senior associate has written an emotional 12-line poem titled ‘Gone Too Soon’ dedicated to his ‘sister’.

The heartbreaking words obtained by Daily Mail Australia describe the woman as having “energy and passion of a different kind” and go on to say that the loss will leave an “irreplaceable void in our lives”.

‘The upside down life. Surprised beyond words. It is not an age to go, much life was ahead of you, controlling our tears, as we will miss you for years,’ she begins.

‘The energy and passion was of a different kind, a memory of your birth in our minds, the goal of reliving the bond and love and respect for each year.

‘He left an irreplaceable void in our lives, he will remember and cherish the wonderful memories, may his soul rest in peace.’

Daily Mail Australia understands that the woman’s family members are still trying to piece together the series of events that led to her tragic death.

The woman had been at work until around 7:30pm on Friday when she left her office in Sydney’s CBD before returning around midnight.

It was originally thought that he was attending drinks at work between 5:30pm and 7:30pm, but Daily Mail Australia now understands that he was actually in the office during this time.

This leaves a gap of nearly five hours in the woman’s movements.

Approximately 20 minutes after returning to her office, the woman apparently used her security card to access the restricted outdoor terrace area, then tragically fell to her death.

Daily Mail Australia understands that EY is drawing up plans to redesign the roof railing on the terrace to build a new barrier to prevent a repeat of the tragedy.

The woman’s husband was on a flight from Singapore to Sydney at the time she died and was given the terrible news after he got off the plane.

The woman is understood to have been a foreign national who had spent approximately six months working for EY.

The police investigation continues and there is no indication that EY, the trading name of Ernst & Young, or the senior associate’s superiors were responsible for the worker’s death.

A member of management emailed staff on Monday to say that “it is with great sadness that I share the news that one of our team members has died at the EY building in Sydney over the weekend.”

“While the police investigation is ongoing, we have been advised that there were no suspicious circumstances,” the email added.

“We have contacted the person’s family to offer our condolences and continued support.”

The email said the company would launch a “comprehensive and wide-ranging internal review” of its health and safety and social policies in the wake of the tragedy.

A group of EY workers told Daily Mail Australia that advice had been offered to employees.

The incident has exposed the intense working conditions at many of the massive multinationals, especially during the auditing season from July to September.

Employees of the world’s top four international consulting firms have referred to their high-risk workplaces as ‘The Meat Grinder’.

Employees, both past and present, have lifted the lid on the stressful environment often experienced at Big4 firms, with some claiming that most new hires only last two years.

Some say workers are frequently pushed to the limit to complete the scrupulously detailed reports in a very short turnaround time, requiring allegedly unpaid and unrecorded overtime.

Social media has been inundated with so-called survivors who claim they regularly worked around the clock to exhaustion and beyond to meet deadlines.

But while billable hours clock in at average levels of just 41-42 hours a week, the reality is often double that, or even more.

One wrote: ‘The cruel work culture needs to be denounced and made news.

‘From personal experience, it is career suicide to work less than 10 hours a day at EY. It is not a joke. Not exaggerating at all.

‘Average work hours were 8 am to 7 pm, sometimes as late as 9:30 pm On other teams, I heard people were there until 2 am.

‘Besides, no one stays for pay. The pay sucks at all of the big 4 consulting firms.

One admitted that they were still holding on but were ready to call it quits at any moment: ‘I’m mentally exhausted and unwell.

‘[But] I was put on so many commitments in addition to the full-time project.

‘Partners won’t care about you as they just want to earn more income and take more money. Unpleasant. I’m so ready to go.

Another added: ‘As an auditor I work for the Big 4 myself and having worked for two other Big 4s I definitely know how stressful it is during year-end audits.

“I hope that this tragedy sheds some light on this issue and that companies provide more support to employees, especially during this time of year.”

EY has promised a “comprehensive and wide-ranging internal review to include health and safety, security and social events” led by its chief mental health adviser in the wake of the tragedy.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted PwC, KPMG and Deloitte for a response to the claims.

For 24-hour confidential support in Australia, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.