San Francisco 49ers: Former announcer suing team for discrimination

SANTA CLARA, Calif., May 19 (UPI) -- His voice once showered San Francisco 49ers fans at Candlestick Park, but now Bob Sarlatte claims there was nothing clean about his unceremonious departure.

Sarlatte was fired in 2014 after 30 years with the team. He filed a lawsuit this week against the team citing age discrimination, according to a San Francisco Chronicle report.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Jose, alleged that the 49ers "engaged in a pattern and practice of eliminating its older workers, while attempting to rebrand the team as a younger, technology-driven organization," the Chronicle reported. In 2014, the 49ers relocated to Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara.

"The suit also said Gideon Yu, a former Facebook and YouTube executive brought in by York in 2011 as the team's chief strategy officer, regularly referred to older 49ers workers as "legacy employees," a demeaning term in the Silicon Valley tech world," Bob Egelko reported in the Chronicle.

Sarlatte was 66 when he was fired. His job was filled by Bob Sargent, despite Sarlatte being told that the field announcer's job was being eliminated. Sarlatte seeks compensation for his losses and punitive damages. E2K, the 49ers' entertainment company, is also named in the suit.