Illinois
BNSF Railroad to pay $228M to truck drivers for violating Illinois state law
$228M settlement towards BNSF Railroad
After a trial that lasted a couple of week, a jury took about an hour to ship a verdict of almost 1 / 4 billion {dollars} towards BNSF Railroad.
CHICAGO – A federal jury in Chicago has ordered one of many nation’s largest railroads to pay almost 1 / 4 of a billion {dollars} to hundreds of truck drivers for violating their privateness rights.
The jury discovered the BNSF Railroad flaunted Illinois’ legislation defending your biometrics data.
“All I ever wished was justice for the over 45,000 truck drivers and myself,” mentioned Richard Rogers, one in all 45,600 truck drivers who have been a part of the category motion lawsuit.
After a one-week trial, a jury on Wednesday ordered the BNSF Railroad to award these truck drivers a complete of $228 million for violating their privateness rights “by taking their biometrics, their fingerprint scans, with out giving them knowledgeable consent,” mentioned Lawyer Jon Loevy, who filed the lawsuit.
Beneath the Illinois Biometric Data Privateness Act, handed in 2008, firms should get written permission earlier than acquiring biometric data like fingerprints, iris scans and face scans.
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The category motion lawsuit says truck drivers have been required to scan their fingerprints to enter any of BNSF’s 4 Chicago space services, however they weren’t telling folks they have been going to keep up it in a database.
“They weren’t telling folks they have been gonna keep it eternally. They have been speculated to purge it. They weren’t doing that, and most significantly they weren’t asking folks for consent,” mentioned Loevy.
In an announcement, a spokesman for BNSF mentioned: “We disagree with and are upset by the jury’s verdict, and assume the choice displays a misunderstanding of key points. We are going to enchantment.”
That $228 million award works out to precisely $5,000 for every of the truckers within the class motion lawsuit.