Two of the state’s highest paid bureaucrats who earn more than the Premier have sparked outrage after winning lavish new taxpayer-funded pay rises worth tens of thousands of dollars.

Official figures show Infrastructure and Transport Department chief executive Jon Whelan earns $636,219 a year, including superannuation, after an almost 13 per cent, or more than $73,000, salary spike.

Latest state government data reveals Child Protection Department chief executive Jackie Bray is now paid $529,155 a year – which includes superannuation and almost $70,000 salary sacrificed contributions – after a 12.5 per cent contract boost worth nearly $60,000.

Premier Peter Malinauskas earns $460,000 a year, under a complex formula set under state law, while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s annual salary is $622,000.

Government officials defended the rises awarded after a salary review “request”.

But critics last night condemned the “eye watering” taxpayer-fuelled pay rise as services are “stretched” and departments told to cut costs.

“Unfortunately the Malinauskas government sees the public service as a means of stacking their political support,” said One Nation SA leader, Upper House MP Cory Bernardi.

“Pay rises like these spark a new round of ‘comparison’ assessment which helps justify higher salaries across public sector ranks.

“It’s a mutual benefit circle where the only loser is the poor South Australian taxpayer.”

No other chief executives received pay rises, according to an online league table that also shows 17 department bosses earning bigger pay packets than Mr Malinauskas.

Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show SA’s inflation rate is 4.9 per cent while the average public sector salary is $98,187.

Office of the Commissioner for Public Sector Employment data, updated on July 1, shows Mr Whelan, the sixth highest paid boss, earned a $73,014 pay rise from his previous $563,205 annual salary.

Mr Whelan, whose department is overseeing the $15.4b North South Corridor project, stopped legally salary sacrificing superannuation worth $273,995 annually between June 2025 and New Year’s Day 2026, records show. His base salary is $568,053.

Both Mr Whelan, a former senior Transport executive who Mr Malinauskas appointed after a 2022 Labor government bloodbath of top public servants, and Ms Bray both enjoy bigger taxpayer-funded pension payments.

Senior government sources say superannuation increases reflect higher base salary rates.

Taxpayers pay Ms Bray $58,899 extra from her previous $470,256 annual salary when she signed a five-year contract in May 2023 after beating more than 60 applicants to lead the embattled agency.

Her contract’s base salary is $393,659 while she also gets a $9186 “car park” and other undisclosed “accessories”.

She is paid 20 per cent more than former DCP chief Cathy Taylor’s $423,140 pay packet.

Treasurer and Public Sector Minister Tom Koutsantonis revealed in his budget this year a partial public service jobs freeze that will stop 1000 hires and save taxpayers $120m.

But the budget also revealed DCP’s budget blew out more than $135m to $1.014b.

Public Service Association general secretary, Charlotte Watson, criticised bigger executive salaries that “families don’t benefit from”.

“At a time when the cost of living is strangling … households and when Premier Malinauskas keeps reminding us we must manage the state’s debt and ‘not be like Victoria’, these extraordinary executive salaries are eye-watering,” she said.

“South Australians are right to question the government’s priorities. How can the Government justify a massive pay rise at the top while leaving the workers behind.”

Neither Mr Whelan, Ms Bray or their bosses, Transport Minister Joe Szakacs and new Cabinet colleague, Child Protection Minister Alice Rolls, would comment.

But in a government statement, Mr Koutsantonis’ spokesman defended the pay rises.

Refusing to say who authorised them, he said Commissioner for Public Sector Employment, Erma Ranieri, gave executive pay advice “using an established job evaluation methodology” that consultancy Mercer developed.

“As part of this process, consideration may be given to a range of factors, including benchmarking with equivalent interstate roles,” he said.

He said chief executive contracts include provision for a “remuneration review to be requested”.

He added: “The salary increases referenced represent the first such review of these roles since these CEs commenced them.”

He said the last general CE pay rise was three per cent while the government “makes no apology” for “constraining the growth of non-frontline public sector roles” to help pay for “generational investments” in health, education and infrastructure while keeping budget surpluses.