Editor's note: This lawsuit has been withdrawn by the plaintiffs and dismissed.
A class action lawsuit has been filed against salad restaurant chain Sweetgreen, Inc., according to court documents from the Circuit Court of Cook County.
The lawsuit, filed on Jan. 14, alleges the restaurant chain violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) by collecting, storing and using biometric information of its employees without written consent.
The lawsuit was filed by attorneys Carl V. Malmstrom, of the firm of Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz, of Chicago, and Joseph I. Marchese and Philip L. Fraietta, of the firm of Bursor & Fisher P.A., of New York.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of named plaintiff Ramona Graham, of Cook County, who worked at a Sweetgreen restaurant in Illinois for about 10 months in 2019.
BIPA was enacted to protect Illinois residents from exposure of their personal biometric data. The complaint asserts the use of biometric data makes an individual more vulnerable to identity theft.
The charges state that Sweetgreen required hundreds or thousands of employees to scan their fingerprints when clocking in and out of their shifts, without providing notice that the biometric data was going to be stored and without obtaining written consent for it to be used.
Additionally, the suit alleges that there were no data retention or destruction policies made available to the employees.
Under the BIPA law, plaintiffs can demand damages of up to $1,000 for cases of negligent violation and up to $5,000 for reckless or intentional violations.
The class action suit is seeking relief, litigation expenses, and two counts of intentional BIPA violation.