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Popeyes Chicken has been illegally collecting and storing its workers’ biometric data, a class action lawsuit alleges.
In a complaint filed in Illinois state court on Monday, lead plaintiff Latoya Roberts accused the fried chicken restaurant chain of collecting and storing employees’ biometric information in the form of fingerprints, without receiving the prior authorization from the employees.
Roberts alleges that the biometric information of hundreds or thousands of current and past employees was gathered when workers were required to “clock-in” using their fingerprints.
Popeyes allegedly failed to provide any details about its biometrics collection policies, Roberts claims, or the data retention or destruction policies, which violates the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA), according to the complaint.
BIPA is a state law that was enacted in 2008 to protect the biometric information of Illinois residents. The law prohibits the collection of biometric information, such as fingerprints and hand scans, without permission. In addition, those who would collect such information must also adhere to disclosure requirements about its plans to store and destroy a person’s biometric identifiers.
Former Worker Seeks Damages Under BIPA
Employees were required to “clock-in” using their fingerprints from approximately September 2019 to at least January 2020, when Roberts left Popeyes as a worker, according to the complaint. Despite being subject to months of biometric collection, Roberts claims the fast food company did not inform her in writing that her biometric data was being collected and stored, nor did she provide her consent, as required by BIPA.
The former employee seeks to represent a class of current and past workers who have had their biometric data illegally taken or stored by Popeyes. Roberts is asking the judge to order the fast food company to comply with BIPA’s requirements for biometric collection, as well as paying damages for each violation of BIPA and covering litigation fees.
TCA reached out to Popeyes for comment and will update the story when we hear back.
Illinois’ BIPA has been invoked in a series of class action lawsuits filed in the last year. Earlier this month, a former Medieval Times employee filed a class action lawsuit accusing the theme restaurant of collecting fingerprints for timekeeping purposes, in violation of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA).
Martina Enriquez filed a class action lawsuit against Navy Pier Inc. in Illinois Circuit Court in Cook County on Dec. 17, claiming her employer has been collecting her biometric information through its time-clock system in violation of state law. Navy Pier Inc. never asked for nor obtained her written consent to collect her biometrics, she claims.
What do you think of employers using biometric information on their employees? Let us know in the comments below.
The proposed class is represented by Carl Malmstrom of Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz LLP.
Counsel for the defendants could not be ascertained on Tuesday.
The Popeyes Biometric Lawsuit is Latoya Roberts et al. v. Restaurant Brands International Inc. et al., case number 2021CH00353, in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, Chancery Division.
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2 thoughts onPopeyes Lacked Consent to Collect Workers’ Biometric Data, Lawsuit Claims
I too worked at Popeyes from 2016 until 2019 and every time I had to clock in or clock out or take a break I had to use my fingerprint and I’m trying to find out how to get in on this myself is there anyway somebody can let me know how I can join this lawsuit
I worked at Popeyes in Illinois and I am trying to get the biometric lawsuit I don’t know where to go to get the lawsuit,