Federal government rejects $28,000 raise proposal for judges

OTTAWA — The federal government rejected a recommendation by an independent commission to increase judges’ salaries by $28,000, saying it can’t justify the raise in this economy.

In a statement posted online Monday , Justice Minister Sean Fraser said the government “respectfully disagrees” with all one-time salary increases advised by the quadrennial judicial compensation and benefits commission this summer.

In July, the commission recommended the government increase the “inadequate” salaries by $28,000 for most federally-appointed judges to $36,000 for the chief justice of the Supreme Court. It argued the raise was necessary to keep the bench attractive to “outstanding candidates”.

It also recommended increasing the compensation of associate judges to 95 per cent of a full-time judge