Papa John’s has been the target of multiple class action lawsuit settlements over the past decade, covering antitrust no-poach clauses, fingerprint collection in Illinois, spam marketing texts, unpaid training time, and delivery driver mileage reimbursement. The biggest one still paying out is a $5 million antitrust settlement covering roughly 520,000 current and former U.S. employees. Several older settlements have already closed, and at least one newer case over website tracking is still in its early stages with no payout on the table.
Which settlement applies to you depends on where you worked, when you worked, and what the claim is about. Here is what each one covers.
The $5 Million No-Poach Antitrust Settlement
This is the Papa John’s settlement most workers are searching for. The lawsuit, In Re Papa John’s Employee and Franchise Employee Antitrust Litigation (Case No. 3:18-CV-00825-BJB-RSE), was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky in December 2018. It alleges Papa John’s violated the Sherman Antitrust Act by putting “no-poach” and “no-hire” clauses in its franchise agreements, which barred franchisees from hiring or soliciting workers from other Papa John’s locations and suppressed wages as a result.1Top Class Actions. Papa John’s Class Action Over No Poaching Agreements Settled for $5M
Who Qualifies
The settlement class covers approximately 520,000 people who worked at any U.S. Papa John’s restaurant between December 18, 2014, and December 31, 2021, and earned more than $200 in compensation during that window.2ClassAction.org. $5M Papa John’s Class Action Settlement Ends No-Poach Employee Antitrust Litigation
How Much You Get
Papa John’s agreed to pay $5 million into a settlement fund. After legal fees and administration costs, the estimated net fund available to claimants is roughly $3.49 million.3ClaimDepot. Papa John’s Employee Settlement Payments are pro-rated by how much you earned during the class period compared with other claimants. If your calculated share works out to less than $5, you get nothing. If you signed an arbitration agreement before the settlement, your payment is reduced by 75 percent. Expect individual payouts in the range of at most a few hundred dollars, depending on how many people file.1Top Class Actions. Papa John’s Class Action Over No Poaching Agreements Settled for $5M
The deal also forces Papa John’s to run antitrust compliance training for domestic executives and vice presidents, formally tell franchisees it will not enforce existing no-poach clauses, and keep such clauses out of new franchise agreements for five years.
How to File and Where Things Stand
Claims could be filed online at PapaJohnsEmployeeSettlement.com or by mailing a printed form to the claims administrator, A.B. Data Ltd., in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. You need your class member ID and PIN from the mailed notice, or you have to contact the administrator to verify your identity. The claim deadline was March 16, 2026.3ClaimDepot. Papa John’s Employee Settlement A final approval hearing was held on May 5, 2026. Payments will not go out until the court grants final approval and any appeals are resolved.2ClassAction.org. $5M Papa John’s Class Action Settlement Ends No-Poach Employee Antitrust Litigation
The $2.25 Million Illinois Fingerprint Settlement
If you worked at a franchisee-owned Papa John’s in Illinois and clocked in using the FOCUS point-of-sale system’s finger scanner, there is a separate settlement for you. Kyles v. Papa John’s International Inc. (Case No. 1:20-cv-07146), filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, alleged violations of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act for collecting fingerprint scans without proper notice or consent.4PR Newswire. Papa John’s BIPA Class Action Settlement Notice
Papa John’s agreed to pay $2,250,000. The class includes approximately 10,975 people who worked at franchisee-owned Illinois Papa John’s locations between December 3, 2015, and December 17, 2025, and used the finger scanner.5Open Class Actions. Papa John’s Class Action Settlement Payouts depend on how many valid claims come in, after deductions for administration, attorney fees requested at up to one-third of the net fund, and a $10,000 incentive award for the class representative.
The deadline to submit a claim, opt out, or object was April 17, 2026. The court held a fairness hearing on May 29, 2026, and filed the Final Approval Order and Judgment that same day.6PJ BIPA Lawsuit. Kyles v. Papa John’s International Settlement
The $16.5 Million Spam Text Settlement
This one is closed, but it still comes up often. Agne v. Papa John’s, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 through a third-party texting service called OnTime4U that blasted promotional messages on behalf of franchisees.
Judge John C. Coughenour certified a nationwide class in November 2012, rejecting the company’s argument that individual questions about consent made class treatment inappropriate.7ABC News. Class Action Moves Forward Against Papa John’s Text Spamming The case settled in May 2013 for $16.5 million, covering roughly 222,000 affected individuals. The breakdown included over $11 million in cash awards, $2.86 million in free pizza vouchers, $2.45 million in attorney fees, and $250,000 in court administration costs. Each individual claimant received $50 and a free pizza.8HKM. Class Action Lawsuit Against Papa John’s
The $3.4 Million California Unpaid Training Settlement
Avalos v. Papa John’s International, Inc., filed in 2018 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, alleged the company required hourly workers to complete roughly 20 hours of mandatory online training off the clock and without pay. The suit covered California delivery drivers and other hourly employees at both corporate and franchise locations and claimed the practice distorted minimum wage, overtime, and final wage statement calculations.9Law360. Papa John’s Workers Reach $3.4M Unpaid Training Deal
Papa John’s denied the allegations and settled for $3.4 million. After 30 percent for attorney fees, $80,000 in legal costs, and $185,000 for settlement administration, employees at corporate-owned stores received up to $166 each, while franchise employees received $50 gift cards.10BAM Law. California Wage Theft Lawsuit: Papa John’s Settles for $3.4 Million
Delivery Driver Reimbursement Cases Against the Bajco Franchise
Delivery driver pay cases at Papa John’s have been directed at Bajco, a major franchise operator run by Nadeem, Malik, and Faisal Bajwa, with locations across Indiana, Illinois, Florida, Ohio, and other states. These are suits against the franchisee, not Papa John’s International, so eligibility is limited to drivers who worked for Bajco locations.
Hawn et al. v. Bajco 100, LLC et al. (Case No. 4:22-cv-01337), filed in July 2022, alleged that drivers at 125 Papa John’s locations were reimbursed at flat per-delivery rates far below the IRS standard mileage rate, which ran from $0.535 to $0.625 per mile during the relevant period. The complaint framed the shortfall as a “kickback” that pushed effective pay under the federal minimum wage, violating the Fair Labor Standards Act.11ClassAction.org. Papa John’s Franchise Chain Failed to Fully Reimburse Delivery Drivers’ Expenses, Lawsuit Claims
An earlier Bajco case with similar claims settled for $9 million, covering over 8,000 drivers who worked for the franchise group between July 2019 and October 2023. A follow-up suit, Beard v. Bajco, was filed December 2, 2024, seeking to represent all Bajco drivers nationwide on FLSA and state wage claims.12Biller Kimble. Biller Kimble Files Second Lawsuit Against Bajco, a Major Papa John’s Franchise Operator
The New York Harlem Wage Theft Fund
Separately, the New York State Attorney General sued Papa John’s franchisee Ronald Johnson and his company, New Majority Holdings LLC, for failing to pay Harlem workers all their wages between 2008 and 2013. People of the State of New York v. New Majority Holdings LLC and Ronald Johnson (No. 452487) produced a judgment of more than $2 million in 2015.13Papa John’s NY AG Fund. Papa John’s NY AG Settlement Fund
Both deadlines have passed. The initial claims deadline closed in January 2023, and the deadline to request a reissued check expired February 28, 2026. Unclaimed funds have been transferred to the New York State Comptroller’s Office of Unclaimed Funds, where affected workers can still search for any remaining money owed to them.13Papa John’s NY AG Fund. Papa John’s NY AG Settlement Fund
The Website Tracking Lawsuit (No Settlement Yet)
One newer case is often found in the same searches but has not produced a payout. Gershzon, et al. v. Papa John’s International Inc. (Case No. 3:26-cv-03504-TSH) was filed April 24, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Three plaintiffs allege the Papa John’s website keeps tracking users and sharing data with third parties like Facebook, Google, and Amazon even after users reject non-essential cookies. The suit brings claims under California’s Invasion of Privacy Act and seeks damages and an injunction.14Top Class Actions. Papa John’s Hit With Class Action Over Alleged Tracking Despite Users Rejecting Cookies A 2022 class action had already accused the company of using “session replay” software on PapaJohns.com to record consumer browsing activity.15ClassAction.org. Papa John’s International Inc. Lawsuits No class has been certified and no money is available at this stage.