Abbott India

2016: Suicide of the employee because of the overestimated tasks

In August, 2016 it became known of the death of one of specialists in Abbott sales. He committed suicide because of pressure of the company to carry out too high assigned tasks.

The The New York Times newspaper made own investigation which showed that some managers of the Indian representative office of Abbott required from sales managers to implement the plan "at any cost" that contradicts requirements of the Indian legislation, medical standards and own ethical principles of the company.

The 7-year-old son Ashisha Avastkhi looks at the photo of the late father

To sell goods in the specified volume, the staff of Abbott had to resort to different methods. One of them consisted in the arrangement with the doctor who appointed to the patients coming to inspection, the medicines Abbott.

Besides, for accomplishment plans to employees of Abbott had to buy drugs and also to bribe doctors at own expense.

Set impracticable tasks for sales representatives. This pressure was not sustained by Ashish Awasthi who, having fulfilled in Abbott about two years, was considered as one of the most successful sellers at the Indian office of the company. At the end of July, 2016 he committed suicide, and in the suicide note they accused the former employer forcing to implement inadequate volumes of products of the death.

Several months prior to death Ashish Avastkhi complained to the wife of the new head, having told that her husband set "brutal and terrible" tasks of sales. In day when Avastkhi committed suicide, he had to meet that manager. The widow reported afterwards that Ashish Avastkhi prepared for dismissal after the forthcoming conversation with the new direct head.

After a suicide of Avastkhi more than 250 of his colleagues took to the streets for a protest against excessively aggressive policy of sales of Abbott. In the company categorically deny the fault in the death of the subordinate and said that policy, methods of work and personnel trainings completely meet laws, standards of the market and medical requirements.^[1]

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