Facts and questions about Brazil => food for thought for you, American and European coaches
Unlike in the USA and most European countries, in Brazil, it is a serious infraction to practice a wide variety of activities related to Physical Education (including, but not only, strength coaching) without a LICENCE. The licence is provided by a Federal Council and regulated by Federal Law.
Serious shit.
There is an eternal discussion about whether this is good or bad. We are not naive: we know it doesn’t work and that our annual contribution is more important to them than the quality of the service they were supposed to regulate.
In Brazil, it is mandatory that a Physical Educator be present in any organization where some form of physical activity takes place.
Sounds good, right? But it isn’t. The base pay for Physical Educators (also established by law) is less than US$3.00/h . Do the math. A full time job pays less than US$500/month.
So, the Physical Educator is not the beneficiary of this huge amount of regulation. Let’s see society: with so much regulation, we would expect service to be top notch, right? Wrong again: most Physical Educators have no access to basic barbell training knowledge during their college years. If they want to be minimally competitive, they must seek it elsewhere – formally or informally.
Are the gyms protected, then? Nope. That much regulation means so many taxes and fees that they have their hands tied: they can’t offer their staff a decent salary or hire more personel. The rule is understaffed gyms with problems that range from inadequate training programs to safety.
What about personal trainers? They are probably doing well, then, since gyms are understaffed. Wrong again: the severely understaffed gyms members have no money to pay for personal training. The other gyms may offer some opportunity, but what about the mandatory physical educators at the weight room? Their role is to provide members with programs and instruct them. Competition, right? And most members don’t see a reason to hire personal trainers.
So, who gains?