A 29 year-old female freelance news anchor, Jacqueline (name changed), was hospitalised on January 17th after a suspected suicide attempt at her work place. The incident occurred around 6:00 pm, following an alleged dispute over unpaid salaries.
According to reports, Jacqueline had been working as a freelance news anchor in a reputed Tamil news media house in Chennai for the past nine months and had not received her salary since November 2024. She reportedly met with the HR manager, Ramya (name changed), to enquire about the outstanding payments.
The report further alleges that Ramya made inappropriate remarks, linking salary disbursement to personal favors with the Managing Director (MD). Feeling distressed, Jacqueline is said to have consumed a large quantity of sleeping pills in the office’s makeup room.
Colleagues discovered her unconscious and immediately rushed her to a private hospital in Kelly’s. She was later transferred to Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital(KMC Hospital) in Chennai for further treatment and is currently under observation.
This incident has raised concerns about workplace conditions and potential harassment at the media house the incident had occured. It is reported that three other employees have also not received their salaries for the past three months.
The above report is based on preliminary information and the investigation is ongoing.