Presidents of the country's courts criticize the bill on wages: “catastrophic consequences” and “anomalies in the system”
The presidents of the Romanian courts have sent a common point of view in which they harshly criticize the draft law on the salaries of magistrates, which they say could generate “catastrophic consequences” and major imbalances in the judicial system.
The document is sent in the context of the positions previously expressed by the president of the High Court of Cassation and Justice and the Superior Council of the Magistracy.
Magistrates warn that the project could produce paradoxical situations in the payroll system.
“The project texts will cause anomalies translated into different classifications of people depending on the date of promotion or recruitment in public positions so that situations will be reached where, as a result of promotion in grades or steps of seniority, salary rights will decrease”the document states.
They argue that the level of the proposed ranking coefficients affects the constitutional principle of equality between powers.
“The level of the proposed ranking coefficients violates the constitutional principle of equality between powers, without taking into account the constitutional role of the judiciary”the signatories send.
In the same document, they also accuse the general direction of the bill.
“The only concern of the initiators was to increase the salaries of dignitaries, although they call for moderation in spending public money”, the presidents of the courts also state.
The magistrates also refer to possible effects on the judicial pension system, claiming that new imbalances could arise.
“The new salary law in its current form will cause a further decrease in this right, so that instead of 3 categories of pensioners in the judiciary there will be four, each of which will be maintained in pay, with differences of more than 100% between them, under identical conditions of rank and seniority, which cannot be admitted”is also shown in position.
The signatories claim that the problems are caused by the lack of clear rules and inconsistent legislative decisions.
“The sums owed by the Romanian state are the consequence of the decision-makers' inability to issue clear and unambiguous rules”they say, adding that they were created “all kinds of preferential exceptions to certain professional categories, discriminating against others”.
Finally, the presidents of the courts reject what they call public pressure on the judicial system: “We reject the strategy openly assumed at the political level of continuous demonization of magistrates (…) and draw public attention that we are no longer willing to accept irresponsible and humiliating, baseless attitudes from other powers.”
The list of signatories includes presidents of courts in all counties of the country, as well as military courts.
