The Union League Club of Chicago has become one of the latest employers in Chicago targeted by a class action lawsuit under the state's biometrics privacy law, because the Club allegedly improperly required workers to scan their fingerprints when punching in and out of work shifts.
The club's biometric timekeeping system "includes the dissemination of biometrics to each other and third parties, such as data storage
vendors and payroll services," says the lawsuit, filed in Cook County Circuit Court.
The Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) requires written employee consent before collecting biometric information, the suit says.
"Compliance with BIPA is straightforward and inexpensive, and may be accomplished through a single, signed sheet of paper," the suit says. "BIPA’s requirements bestow a right to privacy in biometrics and a right to make an informed decision when electing whether to provide or withhold biometrics."
Lead plaintiff Kathleen Reese was required by the club to provide biometric scans each time she clocked in or out of work, the lawsuit states.
"Though Defendant collected, stored, and used Plaintiff’s biometrics for timekeeping and access purposes, Defendant never provided Plaintiff with any written disclosures informing Plaintiff that it was collecting, storing, and using biometrics or explaining the purpose or length of term for which the biometrics were being collected and stored," says the suit. "Defendant never sought, nor has Plaintiff ever provided, any written consent relating to Defendant’s collection, use, or storage, or dissemination of the biometrics."
The lawsuit seeks $5,000 for each willful violation of the law and $1,000 for each negligent violation plus legal fees.
The Illinois Supreme Court has interpreted the BIPA law to allow plaintiffs to demand damages for each time an employee may be required to scan their fingerprints at work, with no limit, going back over the preceding five years.
The plaintiffs are represented by attorney Mark Hammervold, of Hammervold Law LLC, of Chicago.