The Court of Justice of the EU has ruled that judges do not have the right to financial compensation for additional work.

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has issued an important ruling regarding the rights of judges, establishing that they do not have the right to financial compensation for overtime worked. The decision was made in the context of a complaint from a judge in Galați, who requested additional payment from unspent funds for vacant positions. The CJEU emphasized that the principle of judicial independence does not oppose national regulations that provide for granting time off instead of financial compensation.

This ruling contradicts the proposals of the head of the High Court, Lia Savonea, who wanted to compensate judges from budgetary savings. Also, in Romania, the pensions of magistrates are among the highest in the European Union, with an average pension of 5000 euros per month, compared to the national average pension of 500 euros. The Bolojan government intends to reduce pensions to 70% of net income and to raise the retirement age to 65, but these proposals are contested by magistrates. Additionally, the agreement proposed by Savonea does not include the obligation to respect CJEU decisions, which raises questions about the compliance of the Romanian judicial system with European legislation.