A class action suit filed on Feb. 26 in Cook County Circuit Court accuses Bearco Management Inc, owner of over 30 McDonald's restaurants across Illinois, of violating an Illinois biometrics privacy law in the way it collects, stores and uses its employees' handprint scans.
Plaintiff and class representative Juan Onofre worked at a Bearco McDonald's restaurant from 2018 to 2020, according to the complaint. During that time, Onofre's work hours, like other Bearco McDonald's employees, were tracked through handprint data. Employees were required to place their hands on a scanner to verify their identity when clocking in and out of work shifts.
Onofre accuses Bearco of violating the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act through: failing to obtain written consent from its employees to collect, store and use their handprints; failing to inform employees of the intent in collecting, storing and using handprints; and not offering a publicly available policy for retention and destruction when employment is terminated.
Negligent violations of the BIPA are subject to damages of $1,000, while intentional or reckless violations are subject to $5,000 in damages, for each occurrence and for each class member. The law has been interpreted to define individual violations as each time a biometric identifier is scanned, so, in this case, each time a worker scans their hand on a company timeclock.
Onofre is represented by attorney J. Eli Wade-Scott, of the firm of Edelson P.C., of Chicago.