PERSPECTIVE Opportunities for a Restoration? The Future of Greek Collective Bargaining after the Third Memorandum THORSTEN SCHULTEN September 2015 n Under the first two Memorandums, Greece had to commit itself to a radical re ­structuring of its collective bargaining system. In particular, non-trade union repre ­sentations of employees were permitted, extensions of collective agreements were prohibited and the favourability principle with regard to the hierarchy of collective bargaining levels was abolished. n In practice, Greece has experienced a deep decline in industry-wide collective agree ­ments since 2011. This has been accompanied by radical decentralisationalongside a veritable dissolution of collective bargaining in large parts of the economy. The Syriza government’s proposals for the restoration of an effective Greek collective bargaining system have failed so far because of the political resistance of the Troika. n Within the framework of the third Memorandum it was agreed to evaluate recent changes in Greek collective bargaining with the participation of independent ex ­perts and international organisations, including the International Labour Organisa ­tion(ILO). On this basis decisions should be made concerning further reforms of the Greek collective bargaining system, taking into account»best practices« in Europe. International Trade Union Policy