Sebi Denies Toxic Work Culture Claims, Calls Them Misplaced

New Delhi, Sep 4 (PTI) Capital markets regulator Sebi on Wednesday said claims of an unprofessional work culture in its offices are "misplaced" amid reports of a toxic work environment at the watchdog.

It further said these claims were not endorsed by any of its employee associations.

In a statement, the regulator mentioned that some "external elements" had instigated its employees into believing that they shouldn't be held to high standards of performance and accountability, though, it did not provide specific details.

The statement came in the backdrop of media reports suggesting that employees of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had written a letter to the government on August 6, raising concerns over "toxic work culture" and setting unrealistic targets.

"The claims of unprofessional work culture in the letter dated August 6, 2024, are misplaced," Sebi said in a statement.

The regulator suspects that junior officers have been receiving messages from outside parties encouraging them to "go to the media, the Ministry, or the Board," possibly for the outsiders' own agendas.

"Sebi apprehends that the junior officers have been receiving messages from external elements outside their group, effectively instigating them to 'go to media, go to the Ministry, go to Board', perhaps to serve their own purpose. In fact, the letter of August 6, 2024, was not sent by the Sebi employee associations to the Government (and a section of the media)," the statement noted.

According to the regulator, it was an anonymous email that was sent, and Sebi officers and associations have themselves condemned it.

They expressed full faith in Sebi's leadership and disapproved of attempts to manipulate the situation for personal agendas, it added.

The markets regulator said that recently, some of its employees demanded a 55 per cent increase in House Rent Allowance (HRA) over the 2023 allowance and raised concerns about updates to Sebi's Management Information System for Key Result Areas (KRAs), which was designed for transparency and accountability. This led to a 15-minute silent protest.

When the media framed the protest as being solely about employees' working conditions, allowances, and perks, some employees deliberately shifted the narrative to focus on the work environment. This was done to gain bargaining power for more benefits, Sebi said.

A letter on this was sent to HRD on August 6. A second letter followed a week later, listing 16 demands for additional monetary and non-monetary benefits, including increased HRA and automatic promotions for lower performance ratings without interviews, it added.

The regulator highlighted that its officers are already well-compensated, with entry-level officers earning a cost to the company (CTC) of approximately Rs 34 lakhs per annum, and the new demands would add another Rs 6 lakh to their CTC.

Sebi said it has emphasised its commitment to a high-performance culture, responsiveness to market needs, and accountability through various measures like setting quantified KRAs, monthly targets, MIS for tracking performance, and a robust promotion policy.

Over the last 2-3 years, these initiatives have improved productivity and reduced pending matters, demonstrating Sebi's effectiveness.

The regulator said that claims of unprofessional work culture in the letter dated August 6, 2024, are misplaced and seem to stem from a few instances of officers under-reporting their capacity, misreporting KRA achievements, delaying decisions, and manipulating appraisal marks for promotions.

Sebi said it has addressed these issues with corrective actions.

Expressing concerns over some "external elements", Sebi said such "elements have attempted to diminish the significant capabilities of Sebi employees by instigating employees to believe that as "employees of a Regulator", they should not be required to have such high standards of performance and accountability.

The regulator said it would not speculate on who those external elements may be or what their motives might be.

Sebi said it is committed to enhancing the capacity of all its employees and giving them the opportunity to actualise their full potential.