4. Structural policies to enhance competitiveness and growth
4.1 Labour market and human capital
In recent years, major changes have been made to Greek labour market institutions and wage bargaining systems to make the labour market more flexible. The Greek authorities are committed to achieve EU best practice across labour market institutions and to foster constructive dialogue amongst social partners. The approach not only needs to balance flexibility and fairness for employees and employers, but also needs to consider the very high level of unemployment and the need to pursue sustainable and inclusive growth and social justice.
Review of labour market institutions. As a prior action the Government will launch a consultation process led by a group of independent experts to review a number of existing labour market frameworks, including collective dismissal, industrial action and collective bargaining, taking into account best practices internationally and in Europe. Further input to the consultation process described above will be provided by international organisations, including the ILO {widely known for its pro-worker stance…not}. Following the conclusion of the review process, by [September] 2016 (key deliverable)the authorities will bring the collective dismissal and industrial action frameworks and collective bargaining in line with best practice in the EU {legislation that allows mass redundancies is becoming a prerequisite for the first time}. Any changes to the framework of labour market policies will be done in consultation and agreement with the institutions. No changes to the current collective bargaining framework will be made before the review has been completed {just in case elected politicians decide to…decide om something}. The authorities will respect the provisions of Law 4172/2013, in particular with regard to minimum wages. Changes to labour market policies should not involve a return to past policy settings which are not compatible with the goals of promoting sustainable and inclusive growth.
Simplification of labour legislation. Existing labour laws will be streamlined and rationalised through the codification into a Labour Law Code by end 2016 (key deliverable){vague plan, vague law, vague clause}.
Undeclared work. By [June 2016], the authorities will adopt an integrated action plan (key deliverable) to fight undeclared and under-declared work in order to strengthen the competitiveness of legal companies and protect workers as well as raise tax and social security revenues. The plan will benefit from the intermediate results of the technical assistance provided by the ILO. It will include improved governance of the labour inspectorate and specify eventual further needs for technical assistance. The authorities will not introduce changes to the system of controlling and fining until the adoption of the fully integrated action plan. By [May 2016] the authorities will link the tax, ERGANI and social security fund reporting framework to detect undeclared work, granting further access to the labour inspectorate to all other relevant administrative databases; and provide a timeline for thecompletion of the risk-assessment IT system.The authorities will adopt legislative actions to tackle the issue of undeclared work in agriculture by [May 2016], to be followed by further actions to be taken by [September] 2016 in other sectors, including in [construction].
Mechanism for diagnosis of labour market needs. An integrated mechanism for diagnosis of labour market needs developed as part of the deployment of EU funds should be rolled out, in order to identify dynamic sectors of the market and existing skills mismatches. The results arising from the mechanism will provide Greek policy-makers with a comprehensive and independent reference for the development of evidence-based employment policies, and help develop stronger links between the Greek educational and training system and the labour market. This mechanism will be a dynamic tool that shall designed by July 2016 and be fully applied as of October 2016 and updated and adjusted on an ongoing basis.
Vocational training.The government will by [June 2016] i) legislate the quality frameworks for VET curricula and apprenticeships and ii) finalise and agree with the institutions the VET strategy and the integrated implementation plan with quantified targets for 2016/17 and 2017/18. Furthermore, consistent with the 2016 Budget and to deliver the modernisation and expansion of vocational education and training (VET) in line with 2013 (Law 4186/2013), the Government will by [June] 2016 (key deliverable): (i) launch two small scale pilots projects of partnerships in 2016; and (ii) Adopt an integrated plan for Human Capital development, addressing economic growth and supported by the VET Reform (June 2016); (iii) Develop and adopt the framework for and launch a series of major VET partnerships, involving employer sectoral representative bodies and social partners, to serve as intermediary structures in order to support employers to offer work-based learning vacancies and ensure a significant expansion of apprenticeships by the academic year 2016-17 (June for the adoption of the framework and September for the launch).
Capacity building. Over the medium term, the institutional capacity in the field of labour administration (encompassing the Ministry of Labour as well as all responsible implementing bodies and agencies) will be strengthened in terms of policy formulation, implementation and monitoring in order to increase the ability to deliver welfare reforms, active labour market policies, and achieve the front-loading of the absorption of Structural Funds. As a first step, [by September 2016] the needs of the labour administration in terms of institutional capacity will be identified. Public employment services (OAED) will be restructured and reinforced through the completion of the existing initiative on the re-engineering of OAED, by end 2016.
Technical assistance. For the effective implementation of the reform agenda, including labour market reform, VET and capacity building of the labour administration, the authorities will use technical assistance, benefiting inter alia from expertise of international organisations such as the OECD and the ILO.
Education. The authorities will ensure further modernization of the education sector in line with the best EU practices, and this will feed the planned wider Growth Strategy. The authorities with the OECD and independent experts will prepare an assessment of the Greek education system. This assessment will cover all levels of education, including linkages between research and education and the collaboration between universities, research institutions and businesses to enhance innovation and entrepreneurship. Inter alia, the assessment will analyse the implementation of the 'new school' reform, the scope for further rationalisation (of classes, schools and universities), functioning and the governance of higher education institutions, the efficiency and autonomy of public educational units, and the evaluation and transparency at all levels. The assessment shall propose recommendations in line with best practices in OECD countries. Until completion of the review, the Government will not introduce legislation affecting any level of the education system. Any exceptions due to urgent needs will be discussed and agreed with the European partners.
The assessment work will be done in two phases. Phase 1 will be completed by June 2016. It will provide a focused evidence-based update on key reform and implementation challenges, and provide analysis and policy options and recommendations by May 2016. Then, based on the recommendations of the assessment, the authorities will (key deliverable) in [June] 2016, prepare an updated Education Action Plan and present proposals for action, and where possible some actions should enter into force in time for the 2016/2017 academic year. In particular, the authorities commit to align the number of teaching hours per staff member, and the ratios of students per class and pupils per teacher to the best practices of OECD countries to be achieved at the latest by June 2018. The evaluation of teachers and school units will be consistent with the general evaluation system of public administration. The authorities will ensure a fair treatment of all the education providers, including privately owned institutions by setting minimum quality standardsbe satisfied by all education providers and a framework of non-discriminatory common rules allowing higher standards or quality controls by private providers.
Phase 2 will undertake further in-depth policy analysis on the topics mentioned in the MoU, and will seek to engage a wide range of stakeholders to build support for the reform process through seminars and workshops. It will be undertaken over the period of July 2016 to June 2017.
4.1 Labour market and human capital
In recent years, major changes have been made to Greek labour market institutions and wage bargaining systems to make the labour market more flexible The Greek authorities are committed to achieve EU best practice across labour market institutions and to foster constructive dialogue amongst social partners. The approach not only needs to balance flexibility and fairness for employees and employers, but also needs to consider the very high level of unemployment and the need to pursue sustainable and inclusive growth and social justice. The government has committed as a prior action to reverse the legislation of the after-effect of agreements legislated in art 72 of 4331/2015 of 2 July 2015.
Review of labour market institutions. The Government will launch by October 2015 a consultation process led by a group of independent experts to review a number of existing labour market frameworks, including collective dismissal, industrial action and collective bargaining, taking into account best practices internationally and in Europe. Further input to the consultation process described above will be provided by international organisations, including the ILO. The organization, terms of reference and timelines shall be agreed with the institutions. Following the conclusion of the review process, the authorities will bring the collective dismissal and industrial action frameworks and collective bargaining in line with best practice in the EU. No changes to the current collective bargaining framework will be made before the review has been completed. Changes to labour market policies should not involve a return to past policy settings which are not compatible with the goals of promoting sustainable and inclusive growth.
Undeclared work. By December 2015, the authorities will adopt an integrated action plan (key deliverable) to fight undeclared and under-declared work in order to strengthen the competitiveness of legal companies and protect workers as well as raise tax and social security revenues. This will include improved governance of the labour inspectorate and specify technical assistance. As a first step, the authorities will link the tax, ERGANI and social security fund reporting framework to detect undeclared work.
Vocational training. Furthermore, consistent with the 2016 budget and to deliver the modernisation and expansion of vocational education and training (VET), and on the basis of the reform adopted in 2013 (Law 4186/2013), the Government will by December 2015 (key deliverable): (i) legislate a modern quality framework for VET/Apprenticeships, (ii) set up a system to identify skills needs and a process for upgrading programs and accreditation, (iii) launch pilots of partnerships with regional authorities and employers in 2015-16 and (iv) provide an integrated implementation plan from the Ministry of Labour, the Ministry of Education, and OAED to provide the required number of apprenticeships for all vocational education (EPAS and IEK) students by 2016 and at least 33% of all technical secondary education (EPAL) students by 2016-2017; (v) ensure a closer involvement of employers and a greater use of private financing. Regional public-private partnerships will be run during the academic year 2015-16.
Capacity building. Over the medium term, the capacity of the Ministry of Labour will be strengthened in terms of policy formulation, implementation and monitoring in order to increase the its ability to deliver welfare reforms, active labour market policies, and achieve the front-loading of the Structural Funds. This will include improving the public employment services through the completion of the re-engineering of OAED. Existing labour laws will be streamlined and rationalised through the codification into a Labour law Code by end 2016 (key deliverable).
Technical assistance. For the effective implementation of the reform agenda, including labour market reform, VET and capacity building of the Ministry of Labour, the authorities will use technical assistance, benefiting inter alia from expertise of international organisations such as the OECD and the ILO.
Education. The authorities will ensure further modernization of the education sector in line with the best EU practices, and this will feed the planned wider Growth Strategy. The authorities with the OECD and independent experts will by April 2016 prepare an update of the OECD's 2011 assessment of the Greek education system. This review will cover all levels of education, including linkages between research and education and the collaboration between universities, research institutions and businesses to enhance innovation and entrepreneurship (see also section 4.2). Inter alia, the review will assess the implementation of the 'new school' reform, the scope for further rationalisation (of classes, schools and universities), functioning and the governance of higher education institutions, the efficiency and autonomy of public educational units, and the evaluation and transparency at all levels. The review shall propose recommendations in line with best practices in OECD countries.
Based on the recommendations of the review, the authorities will prepare an updated Education Action Plan and present proposals for actions no later than May 2016 to be adopted by July 2016, and where possible measures should enter into force in time for 2016/2017 academic year. In particular, the authorities commit to align the number of teaching hours per staff member, and the ratios of students per class and pupils per teacher to the best practices of OECD countries to be achieved at the latest by June 2018. The evaluation of teachers and school units will be consistent with the general evaluation system of public administration. The authorities will ensure a fair treatment of all the education providers, including privately owned institutions by setting minimum standards.