Complaints Office (Section 13 AGG)
Mandatory office for discrimination complaints
TL;DR
§ 13 AGG requires employers to set up a complaints office that employees can turn to if they feel disadvantaged on the basis of a characteristic under § 1 AGG.
What is the complaints office (Section 13 AGG)?
Duties of the complaints office:
- Communicate how it can be reached
- Receive complaints
- Examine, communicate the outcome (§ 13(1) AGG) and initiate measures
- Protect the complainant (prohibition of victimisation under § 16(1) AGG — also covers supporters and witnesses)
- Document
Germany and Austria compared
The obligation to set up an in-house complaints office is a matter of German law. Austrian equal treatment law is structured differently — there, the central contact points sit outside the company.
Germany (Section 13 AGG)
Employees have the right to complain to the competent bodies of the establishment, the company or the public authority if they feel disadvantaged on one of the grounds listed in § 1; the complaint must be examined and the outcome communicated to the complainant (§ 13(1) AGG). The Act, together with information about the body responsible for complaints, must be made known within the establishment (§ 12(5) AGG). The AGG does not provide for a separate fine where no complaints office exists; a failure to provide protection may, however, affect the damages awarded in a discrimination case. The cross-company contact point is the Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency (Antidiskriminierungsstelle des Bundes) (§§ 25, 27 AGG).
Austria (GlBG / GBK-GAW Act)
The Austrian Equal Treatment Act (GlBG) contains no obligation corresponding to § 13 AGG to set up an in-house complaints office. The contact points for those affected are the Ombud for Equal Treatment (GAW) and the Equal Treatment Commission (Gleichbehandlungskommission) (GBK) under the GBK/GAW Act (§ 3). The Ombud for Equal Treatment advises and supports persons who consider that they have been discriminated against within the meaning of the GlBG and may, for that purpose, hold consultation hours throughout Austria (§ 3(4) GBK/GAW Act).
Practical example
A mid-sized company with 80 employees: the complaints office is the head of HR. A notice is posted in the break room and on the intranet (making it known under § 12(5) AGG).