Vom Verbot zur Gleichberechtigung - Hirschfeld-Eddy-Stiftung

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of the law up until now. However, this is also not easy in relation to a law with a normative
goal. How should the prevention and elimination of discrimination be measured.
The effects of laws are always difficult to ascertain, both theoretically and empirically.
In general, the AGG is seen to have a symbolic effect. 8 This means that the law confirms
values such as equality and fairness, and that it creates an awareness of and sensibility
for discriminatory behaviour in important areas of society. The symbolic effect should
not be underestimated, since reflection and increased sensibility can effect a change in
norms, which then influences behaviour. This symbolic effect is no small matter, particularly
in relation to the equal treatment of lesbians, gay men, and transgender people,
because, as was already mentioned, the AGG affirms, for the first time, that discrimination
on grounds of sexual identity is forbidden under German law.
The experience derived from our counselling practice at the Federal Anti-Discrimination
Agency now shows the first indications of a greater sensibility also on the part of business
and industry. Enquiries from employers are, for example, related to the discrimination-free
formulation of job advertisements and application processes. Before the introduction
of the AGG, it was conceivable to see job advertisements like the following:
“Seeking young [female] secretary” or “Seeking [female] cashier, German native speakers
preferred”. The prohibition of discrimination in the AGG is to thank for the fact that,
today, job advertisements are usually free of discrimination.
With its pilot project “Anonymised Application Processes”, the ADS has been providing an
impulse for discrimination-free access to employment. 9 For example, information regarding
personal status can, in the case of a “registered partnership”, lead to discrimination
in an application process. In the case of anonymised application processes, on the
other hand, the focus is on the applicant’s qualifications. In the first phase of the application
process, no photo, name, address, birth date, or information regarding family status
is provided. Only when a decision regarding an invitation to an interview has been
made, does the human resources department receive the complete application information.
The results of this project show that through the anonymisation, people who are
often disadvantaged due to their background, their gender, etc. have the same chance
of being invited to an interview. The anonymisation of the application can, of course, not
prevent intentional or conscious discrimination. However, applicants, who initially seem
somehow foreign to human relations personnel and are not even invited to an interview
for that reason, often have the opportunity to make a convincing case for their employment
in a personal interview.