Wendy’s Collected Employees’ Fingerprints Without Permission, Class Action Claims

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A proposed class action against Wendy’s International, LLC claims the fast-food chain scans employees’ fingerprints for timekeeping purposes without first providing statutory disclosures or obtaining permission.

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The 12-page lawsuit alleges Wendy’s has run afoul of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA), a state law that requires companies to take certain steps before they can handle residents’ biometric identifiers, which are unique physical characteristics such as fingerprints, facial geometries, voice patterns or retina structure.

The plaintiff, a former cook at a Wendy’s location in Skokie, Illinois, says that he and other employees were required to scan their fingerprints in order to clock in and out of their shifts. 

Although the BIPA mandates that companies must secure individuals’ informed written consent prior to collecting, storing or using their biometric data, the plaintiff claims Wendy’s never notified its employees that it was collecting such information, much less obtained their permission to do so.

The complaint contends that in further violation of the state privacy law, Wendy’s never informed workers in writing of the specific purpose and length of time for which their biometric information was being collected, stored or used. The company also failed to publish a publicly available retention schedule and guidelines for permanently destroying their data, the case says.

According to the suit, Wendy’s unlawful collection of “unique, permanent” biometric information through its timekeeping system has exposed employees to “serious and irreversible privacy risks.”

“For example, if the scanning device containing finger scans or other sensitive, proprietary biometric data is hacked, breached, or otherwise exposed, [the plaintiff] and similarly situated employees would have no means by which to prevent identity theft, unauthorized tracking, or other unlawful or improper use of this highly personal and private information,” the filing says.

In light of these concerns, the BIPA was passed in 2008 to provide Illinois residents with a right to know of the risks “inherently presented by the collection and storage of biometrics,” the complaint says.

“Yet [Wendy’s] never adequately informed anyone of its biometric collection practices, never obtained written consent from individuals regarding its biometric practices, and never provided any data retention or destruction policies to anyone,” the suit claims.

The lawsuit looks to represent any Illinois citizens who had their biometric information captured, stored or used by Wendy’s in violation of the state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act.

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