What does "m/w/d" mean in German job offers?

“m/w/d” is an abbreviation of “männlich, weiblich oder divers”. This guide explains why it appears on German job listings.

What does this abbreviation mean?

German job offers often show “m/w/d” in the title. It’s an abbreviation for “männlich, weiblich oder divers” – “male, female or diverse”. This abbreviation means that the job offer is open to all genders, even if the job title is masculine.

Alternative abbreviations

The abbreviation is sometimes in a different order, like “d/w/m”, to avoid putting men first and diverse people last.1 Other letters like “a” (other), “t” (transsexual), “i” (intersexual), “gn” (gender neutral) and “x” (undefined) are sometimes used.2

Why is it everywhere?

Hiring discrimination based on gender is illegal. Companies add this information in their job offers to prevent discrimination lawsuits.3 It does not guarantee that the employer cares about diversity.

Sources and footnotes
  1. ehmers-blog.de 

  2. karrierebibel.de 

  3. karrierebibel.de