William Vinnett v. General Electric Company

William Vinnett appeals from the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of General Electric Co. in his employment discrimination and retaliation suit filed pursuant to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 U.S.C. § 623; Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e-2, 3; and 42 U.S.C. § 1981.

I

Vinnett, who is fifty-two years old and originally from Chile, began working as a product services engineer for GE’s Power Systems Division in Atlanta in October 1999. Under GE’s performance assessment system, there were three ratings an employee could receive. The…