• A claim under Section 12 (3) of the German General Equal Treatment Act (Allgemeines Gleichbehandlungsgesetz (AGG)) for measures against a colleague requires that the colleague’s conduct constitutes discrimination based on a characteristic listed in Section 1 AGG.
• Assigning a long-tenured employee to share an office with trainees does not, without more, constitute age discrimination.
• Rudeness is not workplace bullying; conduct rises to that level only when it is systematic and objectively reprehensible.

The Case—Lunch, a Microwave, and a Lost Contact Lens

The plaintiff has worked as an administrative employee at a university of the defendant German state since 1982. She is now close to retirement. She accused a coworker of bullying and based her claim on four incidents:

• The colleague did not help her look for a contact lens. According to the plaintiff, the search took fifteen to thirty minutes.
• The colleague once spoke to her in a harsh tone and then slammed the door.
• The colleague did not acknowledge birthday wishes sent via a text messaging app.
• The shared lunch was moved to another office, along with the microwave.

The plaintiff demanded that the employer—a German state (Land)—terminate the colleague’s employment, or, alternatively, transfer or formally warn the colleague. She also claimed monetary compensation. She alleged age discrimination based on the employer’s suggestion that she move to an office shared with trainees, arguing that the young adults there would...

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