Gender-neutral language is gradually gaining ground in Germany. In addition to German media, government departments and higher education institutions, gender differences, gender asterisks or neutral addresses are also used in business – both for internal communication and for communicating with customers.

Sometimes it’s the consumers themselves. Thus, the railway company Deutsche Bahn, after a passenger goes to court, will change its way of booking tickets online. In the “gender” option, a third option will appear along with male and female, or the gender questions will be removed altogether.

But the opposite also happens – sometimes in the companies themselves there are opponents of language innovations, as happened in the concern of Audi.

Volkswagen vs Audi manager

“Dear Audians” is how the automotive company Audi addresses its employees. Last year, she created a special guide for employees on using language in business correspondence, work orders and company presentations. In their appeals, they are asked to wear a gender band to avoid discrimination.

But the manager of the Volkswagen company, which includes Audi, is not satisfied. By his own admission, he is generally against discrimination, but considers the enforced use of gender-neutral language to be just that. To fight against the violation of his personal rights, the manager even went to court, where, as a linguistic example, he cited, in particular, the concept of “Der_die Facheexpert_in” (expert_ka) of business management. When working with colleagues at a subsidiary, a VW employee would like to be “left alone” and treated in the usual way. And in case of infractions, it requires the employer to pay a fine of 100 thousand euros.

The case was heard by the Ingolstadt Regional Court. The presiding judge suggested a settlement and that Audi should address this employee “in the usual manner”. However, the company declined such an offer. Removing gender-neutral messages from all emails, apps and presentations is unrealistic, they note, so compromises are impossible. Judgment will be handed down on July 29. But it is already clear that the process will not become a precedent, since, as the author explained in court, this is an individual case that reflects his personal perception.

Gender-neutral language in the German business environment

Among linguists in Germany, gender-neutral language is perceived ambiguously. In particular, the manager’s claim was supported by the German Language Association (Verein Deutsche Sprache) of Dortmund, which considers it “annoying tutelage” and “ideology”. The largest and most authoritative German Language Society in Wiesbaden, on the contrary, finds this form of anti-discrimination useful, but advocates the use of two options: for example, “Schülerinnen und Schüler” (“pupils and pupils”) instead of a gap genre – since “the language must be understandable and conform to the rules of grammar.

According to a survey conducted among HR managers by the ifo Institute Munich and the consultancy Randstad, almost one in three companies in Germany uses gender-neutral, or, as it is also called, inclusive language, mainly for external communication. . And, in general, big companies are showing a big openness here. Some of them are signatories of the “Diversity Charter” and are participating in an initiative that aims to “promote recognition, respect and diversity in the business environment in Germany”. In total, the initiative includes more than 4,000 organizations. Among the signatories of the letter are 30 companies on the DAX index list: Deutsche Post, Siemens, BASF, Adidas, Bayer, Deutsche Telekom, EON, Siemens, McDonald’s – and Audi.

The gender asterisk has taken its rightful place in Duden’s dictionary

One of the recommendations of the authors of the initiative is to use gender-neutral language at your discretion. And, as DW spokesperson Stephan Dirschl notes in a commentary, most signatories to the letter are convinced of the need for inclusive language to overcome prejudice and discrimination.

But the case of Audi shows how important and at the same time difficult it is to involve and convince as many employees as possible. For this, many companies employ so-called Diversity Managers.

“Society in Germany today is more diverse than ever. And our awareness of our individuality is greater than ever. As a result, employers are expected to see and take this diversity into account,” explains Dirschl.

On the one hand, when looking for a job, specialists attach great importance to corporate culture, on the other hand, companies consider team diversity a key factor for business success and innovation.