Mark Janus

Mark Janus was plaintiff in the 2018 United States Supreme Court decision Janus v. AFSCME and is now a fellow at the Illinois Policy Institute (IPI) and the co-located Liberty Justice Center.
Career
From the 1980s to 2007, Janus went from government to private-sector to public job. In 2007, Janus became a child support specialist for the government of the US state of Illinois for eleven years. On 26 February 2018, the case commenced in the United States Supreme Court as Janus v. AFSCME. National Review magazine anticipated a court decision that would mean "judgement day for public unions."
On 27 June 2018, the case concluded with a decision in favor of plaintiff Janus.
(See Janus v. AFSCME.)
Janus reaction
On 28 June 2018, the New York Daily News quoted Janus saying : A lot of these unions have asked for, and received, the ability to inclusively, collectively bargain for everybody... Now that this decision has come down, they’re going to have to come out and sell a product, if you will, and they will have to prove to the individuals that there is a definite benefit for being part of the union." On 1 July 2018, the Washington Post ran an opinion piece by Janus in which he explained why he had filed the lawsuit: I watched the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) union lobby for higher taxes to pay for higher salaries and benefits for government workers such as me... I have had a raise almost every year I have been working for the state... The raises and benefit increases are pushed by government labor unions that have lobbied for the authority to negotiate on behalf of government workers... Why don’t politicians just say no to the demands of the unions when they know the state can’t afford them?... I would gladly forgo my annual raise.
AFSCME reaction
AFSCME Council 31's executive director Roberta Lynch said: This case is a blatant political attack by Bruce Rauner and other wealthy interests on the freedom of working people to form strong unions. We are extremely disappointed the Supreme Court has taken the side of the powerful few, but we’re more determined than ever to keep our union strong, standing up for public services and the working people who provide them.
Other reactions
The Illinois State Journal Register reported comments at the state and national level, including: Janus, Rauner, President Donald Trump, US senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, the Illinois Policy Institute, Americans for Prosperity, Democratic candidate for Illinois governor J.B. Pritzger, Illinois state president John Cullerton, Illinois state senators Sam McCann and Andy Manar, Illinois state comptroller Susan Mendoza, Illinois Federal of Teachers president Dan Montgomery, and Illinois Education Association president Kathi Griffin.
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE Local 728 of Burbank, California) noted that "The case’s plaintiff... who works for the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, and is represented by AFSCME... makes an annual salary of $71,000, and is suing over a $45 monthly agency fee to AFSCME." Further, it noted support from the National Right To Work Legal Defense Fund (NRTWLDF) and the Liberty Justice Center (whose founder is John Tillman, also founder of the Illinois Policy Institute). IATSE Local 728 also noted that Jacob Huebert, senior attorney at the Liberty Justice Center (and at the Goldwater Institute as well as member of the Federalist Society), served as one of Janus' lawyers and connected the center to the institute to "Koch-linked groups" and the Mercer Family Foundation (which as funded Breitbart News and Milo Yiannopoulos).
News interpretations of the decision varied. Both the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times called the SCOTUS decision a "blow" to labor unions. The Washington Times stated that the "media got the Janus decision wrong" with an interpretation of political aspects of union activities.
IPI support
The Illinois Policy Institute (IPI) championed Janus publicly before the case reached the Supreme Court when the case began, during deliberation, and when it ended.
Illinois Policy Institute advocate
Following the Supreme Court ruling, Mark Janus left his job with the state of Illinois.
On 20 July 2018, the Illinois Policy Institute announced that, effective 1 August 2019, Janus had became a fellow and "advocate and spokesperson for workers’ rights."
On 23 July 2018, the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees criticized the decision as "a blatant political attack to further rig our economy and democracy against working people" and accused Janus of being "recruited to lend his name to a lawsuit".

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