Military service plans: Police union fears for the next generation

BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - The German Police Union (GdP) sees the plans to make the Bundeswehr more attractive as significant competition for its own recruitment efforts. The law passed by the Federal Cabinet last week could lead to "more interested and suitable young people initially joining the Bundeswehr and fewer seeking service in the police," according to a statement from the union, which was made available to the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND).

The letter from the GdP board was sent to the Federal Ministry of Defense, the Federal Ministry of the Interior and the Conference of Interior Ministers in August.

Bundeswehr gets overview of entire junior recruit pool

By registering and screening young people again, the Bundeswehr will gain a good overview of the "entire potential pool of recruits" at an early stage and be able to address them directly. This is not possible for the police. Planned bonus payments, travel allowances, and discharge payments would give the Bundeswehr a further advantage, the letter states.

However, the federal and state police will be affected by a high number of retirements in the coming years and will therefore also need new personnel.

The Federal Cabinet approved a law introducing a new military service, which would introduce a mandatory military registration system for young men. The coalition is initially focusing on voluntary service and a more attractive service. A return to conscription in peacetime has not been agreed upon, but Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) has outlined basic requirements for activation./mi/DP/zb