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Mitchell Roth - General Interest -Statecraft

Mitchell Roth, the General Council for the Illinois Education Association, discusses the Janus v. AFSCME of Illinois Supreme Court case, defending the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employee's position on the controversial case. Mark Janus, an employee at the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, filed the case in 2015, arguing that it was unconstitutional to collect 'fair share' dues from non-members. Janus's attorneys asserted that forcing him to pay 'fair share' dues violated his 1st Amendment rights. AFSCME's attorneys argued that since Janus was, by state law, never-the-less represented by AFSCME during contract negotiations and received other benefits as well, his first amendment rights were not violated, a position which previous Supreme Court cases had upheld. In June 2018 the Supreme Court decided in Janus' favor by a 5-4 decision.