Former longtime Red Wings Zamboni driver Al Sobotka was fired because he was caught urinating into a drain, according to court records obtained by the Detroit Free Press.
Sobotka, 68, is suing the NHL team for discriminating against him on the basis of age and disability, according to the lawsuit filed in the Wayne County Circuit Court in Detroit. In the lawsuit, it states Sobotka is diagnosed with benign prostatic hypertrophy. The condition causes a frequent and uncontrollable need to urinate.
According to the documents obtained by the Detroit Free Press, Sobotka drove a Zamboni machine into the garage at Little Caesars Arena on Feb. 2 and got the sudden urge to urinate. Instead of trying to go to the nearest bathroom that was 60 to 70 feet away, he urinated in one of the drains that lead into a sewer. The drain is designed to handle the ice runoff from Zamboni machines and the area is only available to the all-male ice crew.
One of those crew members saw Sobotka urinating and two days later he was called into a meeting with his supervisor and a human resources representative. He was initially suspended for a week but was officially terminated on Feb. 17. His lawyers are looking for compensatory damages, per the report.
Sobotka worked for the Red Wings for 51 years.
