Under the Equal Treatment Act, anyone who feels disadvantaged, harassed, sexually harassed or was instructed to do so is entitled to lodge a complaint, provided the complaint is related to the employment relationship pursuant section 12 para. 1 GBK/GAW Act. This includes EU citizens in Austria, any employer, any works council, any interest group and any GAW Equal Treatment Ombudsperson.

The Equal Treatment Commissions Link as well as the Labour and Social Courts are available as complaint bodies. The Equal Treatment Commission and the court can be called independently of each other. You can choose to file a complaint with the Labor and Social Court, file an application with the Equal Treatment Commission, refer the matter first to the Commission, then to the court, or refer the matter to the court and the Commission at the same time.
The Equal Treatment Commission Link deals with all issues of discrimination. The procedure is low-threshold and free of charge. It examines individual cases and prepares expert opinions, though the decisions of the Equal Treatment Commission are mere recommendations.
The Equal Treatment Commissions work alongside the Labor and Social Courts and the Civil Courts as a special institution. Employees, employers, works councils, the Ombud for Equal Treatment, individuals affected by discrimination outside the world place, or a competent interest groups may each file an application for a review of the violation of equal treatment.
An individual who files a complaint with the Labor and Social Court can likewise receive legal protection from the Chamber of Labor or the trade union.
It must be noted that the GBK cannot award any claims for damages; only the courts can do so.

The deadlines vary depending on the type of unequal treatment. As a rule, claims are subject to the regular limitation period of three years according to section 1486 of the General Civil Code.
With regard to equal treatment of men and women (Part I), the deadline for violations in the establishment of employment relationships and career advancement under section 3 no. 1 and 5 Equal Treatment Act is six months. For the determination of remuneration, granting of voluntary social benefits, measures of education and training and retraining under section 3 nos. 2-4, 6 and in other employment under section 4 Equal Treatment Act it is three years, while it is only fourteen days concerning the termination of employment under section 3 no. 7 Equal Treatment Act. Claims against (sexual) harassment under sections 6 and 7 Equal Treatment Act must be made within one year.
In the case of claims based on discrimination (Part II), six months also apply to violations in the establishment of employment relationships and career advancement under section 17 para. 1 no. 1 and no. 5 Equal Treatment Act. For the determination of remuneration, granting of voluntary social benefits, measures of education and training and retraining, it is three years under section 17 para. 1 nos. 2-4, 6 and section 18 Equal Treatment Act which concerns other employment. In the case of dismissals under section 17 para. 1 no. 7 Equal Treatment Act, the period for bringing an action in court is fourteen days from receipt of the dismissal.
In any case be as quick as possible to have the incident legally assessed and to assert your claims if necessary.

An informal letter is sufficient for a complaint before the GBK. Be as specific as possible in the statement of facts to prove the violation.
The deadline for asserting the claim in court is suspended as soon as you file an application for the examination of the violation before the GBK pursuant to sections 15 para. 2, 29 para. 2 of the Equal Treatment Act.

After the written application has been submitted to the GBK, the respondent is requested to submit a statement within three weeks. All parties involved are obliged to provide the necessary information.
In this GBK procedure not open to the public, the facts of the case are discussed by questioning the parties involved.
If a violation under section 12 of the Equal Treatment Act is established, the procedure before the Equal Treatment Commission ends with the submission of a written proposal for the implementation of equal treatment to the employer or other responsible party in which the employer or other responsible party is requested to end the discrimination pursuant to section 12 para. 3 GBK/GAW Act. The employer is given a deadline of two months to implement the proposal.
Since these are legally non-binding proposals, it is possible that the employer or the other responsible party will not comply with the proposal. In such a case, the affected interest group which is represented in the Senate of the GBK can seek declaratory relief before the competent labor or civil court in light of the violation of the Equal Treatment Act pursuant section 12 para. 4 GBK/GAW Act.

The employer is subject to the general duty of care under service law pursuant to section 1157 para. 1 of the Civil Code (Allgemeines Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch), which includes all material and immaterial interests of the employee, in particular personal rights, related to the employment relationship.
The employer is obliged – in the sense of repressive measures – to, among other things, take appropriate remedial action on the basis of statutory provisions, norms of collective law or the employment contract in the event of harassment by third parties under sections 6 para. 1 no. 2, 7 para. 1 no. 2, 21 para. 1 no. 2 of the Equal Treatment Act.
The remedy is appropriate if it is suitable to protect the harassed person from further harassment. This may take the form of admonishments, warnings, transfers and terminations of employment of the harassing person. The less restrictive means is to always be used.
The object is to prevent further harassment with immediate effect and do so efficiently. There is culpable omission if the employer is aware of the discriminatory situation or at least should have been aware of it.
This is the case of culpability on the part of the employer for the failure to remedy the situation. If the employer did not know or did not have to know about the discrimination, he is not liable. Negligence is therefore sufficient for the employer to be liable.

If the employer of the harassed person does not comply with his duty to remedy under sections 6 para. 1 no. 2, 7 para. 1 no. 2, 21 para. 1 no. 2 Equal Treatment Act, the affected employee may refuse to work. The duty to remedy is a special form of duty of care to which the employer is subject.
The right to refuse performance does not derive directly from the Equal Treatment Act but from general service and labor law.

The affected person can usually claim damages for pecuniary losses suffered for violations of Parts I and II of the Equal Treatment Act and can equally claim compensation for the personal impairment suffered pursuant to sections 15 and 26 Equal Treatment Act. The extent varies depending on the type of unequal treatment.
In order to enforce this, a complaint must be filed with the competent labor and social court on the basis of the Equal Treatment Act.
In any case, please observe the above-mentioned deadlines in order to successfully assert your rights.