AFbM – Disabled Persons Committee
In accordance with its statutory remit (§ 95 Vocational Training Act), the Disabled Persons Committee (AFbM) advises BIBB in the tasks the institute undertakes in the vocational education and training of disabled people.
The AfbM seeks to ensure that due consideration is accorded to the particular needs of disabled persons in vocational education and training, and that VET for disabled persons is coordinated with other services aimed at securing participation in working life. In addition, the AfbM submits proposals to BIBB regarding research projects affecting the vocational education and training of disabled persons. Members of the AFbM meet at least twice a year to explore current issues and problems, discuss project results, develop initiatives and draw up resolutions. The spectrum of discussion topics encompasses such areas as initial and continuing vocational training, the interface problem at the transition from school to VET or with regard to integration into the labour market, and the training of training staff. One main content focus of the committee’s work is the dual training of disabled persons on the basis of the Vocational Training Act and the Crafts and Trades Regulation Code.
The structure of the AFbM is subject to statutory regulation. The committee comprises 17 members, who are appointed by the President of BIBB for a maximum term of four years following proposals made by the Research Council for the Participation of Disabled Persons at the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (§ 64 of German Social Security Code IX, SGB IX). The AFbM has been a sub-committee of the BIBB Board since the reform of the Vocational Training Act in 2005.