THE heartbroken family of a Microsoft engineer who died as he poured in late-night hours has made a desperate cry for companies to stop overworking employees.
Pratik Pandey, 35, was found face down around 2 am inside the Bay Area, California office on August 19 after coming in late to work on multiple projects.
He was found on the company’s Silicon Valley campus[/caption]
He had suffered a heart attack, despite having no prior health issues, community leader Satish Chandra told the Palo Alto Daily Post, citing the medical examiner’s initial assessment.
Pandey told his friends and family that he was under intense pressure from work in the weeks leading up to his death, Chandra said.
He badged in to the office at 7:50 pm to get extra work done the night he collapsed, and was found in the courtyard six hours later, according to his family.
The Microsoft campus, located about 20 minutes outside San Jose, is a massive facility with nearly all glass walls and grass on the roof.
His heartbroken uncle, Manoj Pandey, said that his nephew would work continuous late nights for a “very extended period of time.”
Outside of work, Pandey was remembered as an upbeat sports-lover who loved playing soccer, ping pong, and cricket.
Manoj said that he was a “positive” person despite all of the stress.
Pandey was born in Indore, India, and moved to Silicon Valley to earn a master’s degrees in computer science and software engineering.
After graduating, he went on to work for major companies like Apple and Walmart, according to his LinkedIn.
He joined Microsoft in 2020 and worked with the company’s Fabric product.
This is an AI-powered data analytics platform that stores a company’s information in a single cloud environment.
The product was launched in May 2023.
A viewing service for Pandey was held in the Bay Area before his remains were flown back to India, where his parents and sisters live.
An announcement for the service described him as “A joyful soul with a radiant smile.”
“Pratik loved playing soccer, great son & friend,” read the notice, according to Bloomberg.
In the wake of the tragic news, Manoj has made a desperate cry for companies to stop employees from overworking themselves.
“That will probably save a life,” he said.
“It’s a lot of pain for the family when a loved one passes away.”
The U.S. Sun has reached out to Microsoft for comment on Pandey’s death.
The news comes after a tech CEO died after suffering a mid-air skydiving crash.
