WA judges’ demand for ‘significant’ pay rise slapped down

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WA judges’ demand for ‘significant’ pay rise slapped down

WA judges’ demands for a “significant” pay rise have been slapped down by the State’s independent salaries body, which said salaries would need to be lifted by 11 per cent to meet judicial expectations.

In its determination earlier this month, the Salaries and Allowances Tribunal awarded judges a 4 per cent pay rise from December 1, along with an additional $1000 for motor vehicle allowances.

The rise lifts the pay for Chief Justice Peter Quinlan to $587,569 a year, a Supreme Court Judge to $509,000, a District Court Judge to $458,000 and a magistrate to $378,750.

Camera IconChief Justice Peter Quinlan Credit: Justin Benson-Cooper/The Sunday Times

But in its ruling, the Tribunal pointed to submissions calling for a more significant pay increase, effectively of 11 per cent to bring WA judges in line with other State counterparts.

Under the salary increase requested in submissions, a Supreme Court Judge would be paid more than $540,000 annually.

“The Tribunal acknowledges concerns raised in submissions regarding the attraction and retention issues within the judiciary,” the SAT said in a statement.

“The remuneration increase recommended in this report makes progress in mitigating these issues while mindful of expectations set in the State’s economic

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and remuneration outcomes for public officers.”

As part of Labor’s wage freeze for MPs, judges, and senior public servants, announced in 2017, laws were changed to prevent the Tribunal from making substantial increases in salaries to “catch up” pay rates after the four-year block was removed.

The tribunal warned such an increase would significantly impact the State Budget.

“While the Tribunal understands the basis for the request, not only is the Tribunal legislatively restrained from providing an 11 per cent increase in salaries to restore this relativity, the Tribunal is also cognisant of the impact such an increase would have on salaries and the judicial pension, as they are both funded from public money,” the determination read.

The Tribunal also rejected requests to lift the base calculations for salaries, citing claims that the volume and value of judges’ work have increased.

“In 2022, the Tribunal conducted work value assessments on Supreme and District Court Registrars, benchmarked against other judicial offices,” the statement read.

“The assessment found that, while work value has generally increased for the Registrars, this has been reflected across the whole judiciary.

“The Tribunal has carefully reviewed the responsibilities of various levels of the judiciary and concluded that these changes … are accommodated within the existing relativities.”

The determination comes despite recent changes by the Tribunal to award senior public ******** **** cats massive pay rises of up to 15 per cent after assessing the value of the roles.

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