Working Group on Equal Treatment Issues

The Working Group for Equal Treatment Issues (AKG) advises and supports all members of the university community as well as university bodies on equality matters and actively opposes discrimination. The AKG is a confidential point of contact for cases of sexual harassment or discrimination—whether on the basis of sex, (perceived) ethnicity, religion or belief, age, sexual orientation, disability, or social origin/educational background.

You can contact our office by phone, in writing, or by email—whether you are directly affected or a witness. You can also reach out directly to a member of the AKG. We will handle your concern confidentially.

Leadership team

Chair: Senior Lecturer Dr. phil. Nastasja Penzar
Deputy Chairs: Univ.-Prof. Dr. phil. Sofia Bempeza and Sen. Art. Mag. arch. Maja Ozvaldic

You can contact our office—whether you are directly affected or a witness—by phone, in writing, or by email.
You can also reach out directly to a member of the AKG. We will treat your concern confidentially.

List of members for the term of office:
1 October 2025 to 30 September 2028Representatives of University Professors Barbara Oberhofer                                    
Bars Ula

Alternate member:                                
Clara Reiner                                                             
Iris Cirlan 

Tasks

Areas of activity for the Working Group on Equal Treatment Issues at the University of Applied Arts, based on its legal mandate (Universities Act 2002, Article 42, Paragraph 1 and the Federal Equal Treatment Act, BGBl 100/1993 as amended by BGBl I 65/2004 Article 41, Paragraph 2):

"At every university, the Senate is required to establish a Working Group on Equal Treatment Issues, which will work against discrimination by university institutions on grounds of gender, and advise and support the members and institutions of the University on issues of equality between women and men, as well as women’s advancement (Article 42, Paragraph 1, Universities Act 2002).
Furthermore, the Working Group on Equal Treatment Issues is responsible for matters of equal opportunity irrespective of ethnicity, religion or belief, age or sexual orientation (Article 41, Paragraph 2, B-GlBG) [Federal Equal Treatment Act, BGBl 100/1993, as amended BGBl I 65/2004]."

Advise and support all University workers, teachers, researchers, students and applicants on issues of equality, women’s advancement and protection against discrimination.

• Supervision of personnel matters at the university, e.g. application and appointment procedures, and habilitation.
• Representation in an advisory role in the University Council and Senate and in committees appointed by them.
• Decision-making: Where there are grounds for suspicion of discrimination in connection with a decision of a university institution, the decision may be contested, in accordance with the statutory provisions.
• First contact for cases of mobbing and sexual or gender-based harassment. Confidential advice on and / or mediation for professional support.

Moreover, the Working Group on Equal Treatment Issues shall, through representations or in personal discussions with senior university members, work towards achieving non-discriminatory personnel and organizational policies. Equality of treatment and status should - especially in the university environment - be simply a matter of course. As an independent body, the Working Group on Equal Treatment Issues will continue to work for the establishment and realization of this ‘matter of course’.

The members can be contacted through the Office of the Working Group on Equal Treatment Issues at the University of Applied Arts Vienna.

Contact:
Expositur Vordere Zollamtsstraße 7 = VZA7, 4th floor, 1030 Wien