Old Dominion Employee Fingerprint Scans Violate Illinois Privacy Law, Class Action Claims

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Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. faces a proposed class action lawsuit that alleges the trucking company has unlawfully collected and stored employees’ biometric data without consent.

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The 14-page lawsuit says that Old Dominion has breached the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) by capturing and storing workers’ fingerprint scans via the Kronos time clock system without their express written consent, and by failing to disclose how long and for what purpose workers’ biometrics will be stored and used.

In addition, the suit claims Old Dominion has run afoul of the BIPA by failing to have in place public guidelines that detail its data retention and destruction policies.

Per the case, Old Dominion uses a time clock system that scans an employee’s fingerprint—considered a “biometric identifier” under the BIPA—when they clock in and out of a shift in order to track attendance and work hours. By law, companies are prohibited from capturing such biometric information without first obtaining written consent, informing the individual of the purpose and length of time for which the data will be stored, and providing a policy that establishes when it will be destroyed, the complaint summarizes.

The filing alleges that Old Dominion has not only failed to make proper disclosures to employees but has also neglected to destroy the sensitive biometric data it collects and, in fact, unlawfully retains it, in direct violation of the BIPA.

Additionally, the case claims that Old Dominion, just before the filing of this complaint, “attempted to secure BIPA consent forms from employees by offering to pay them $500.”

The plaintiff works at an Old Dominion facility in Illinois and is required each day to punch in and out of work by scanning his fingerprint, the suit relays.

The lawsuit looks to represent any current or former employees of Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. who worked in Illinois and whose biometric data was captured by the company in violation of the BIPA.

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