Coaches complain about “ignorance” in BMI

After the Federal Cabinet’s decision on the Sports Promotion Act, the professional association of trainers harshly criticized the Federal Ministry of the Interior. The legal opinion in the BMI is “scandalous,” said Holger Hasse and Gert Zender, presidents of the BVTDS. Both spoke of “ignorance of legal regulations” and also complained that the “only independent trainer representation” was not heard when the law was drafted.

“For years, the responsible ministry has refused to negotiate an attractive and transparent remuneration system and to enshrine compliance with labor law framework conditions as a funding requirement in the law,” said the advocacy group’s statement, and continued: “Recently, the BMI’s negative stance has been adopted “The reason for this is that the job profile of a coach in top-class sport does not function according to general labor laws and regulations.”

The BMI is primarily responsible for the sports funding law, which was passed by the traffic light government’s cabinet on Wednesday. The German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB), as the umbrella organization for organized sport, and the athletes’ representation in Germany see the law positively, but criticize parts of the draft, which still has to be passed by parliament. Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD), on the other hand, spoke of a ” important step in making top-class sport even better positioned.”

Trainers in Germany have been complaining about unacceptable working conditions for a long time. “Violations of the Working Hours and Occupational Safety and Health Act or the Part-Time and Fixed-Term Employment Act are commonplace in top German sports. The BMI knows the problems very well based on scientific studies and surveys, but has been ignoring them for years,” it said on Wednesday.