Opinion ID: 775199
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Woodford's eligibility under the FMLA

Text: 6 As an initial matter, Woodford suggests in passing that whether she is an eligible employee under the FMLA is a disputed issue of fact that the district court inappropriately resolved on summary judgment. In order to be eligible for FMLA benefits, an employee must have been employed for at least twelve months with an employer and have worked at least 1,250 hours in the twelve months preceding the date on which eligibility is determined. See 29 U.S.C. § 2611(2)(A). The district court found that, based on Woodford's own time sheets, she had not worked the necessary hours to qualify as an eligible employee. Woodford protests that the time sheets she filled out and signed do not accurately reflect the hours she worked. Because CAGC paid her a weekly salary regardless of how many hours she logged on the time sheets, Woodford argues she had no reason to diligently report the hours she worked. However, the time sheets themselves show varying hours recorded from week to week, which suggests that Woodford did not fill them out in a perfunctory manner to ensure formal compliance with a workplace rule, as the district court noted. See Woodford, 103 F. Supp. 2d at 100. Woodford claims that her personal log and work diary shows she worked 1,377 hours in the preceding twelve months. However, it strains credulity to claim that, on the one hand, Woodford could not be bothered with accurately reporting her hours to her employer, yet on the other hand, each night she assiduously made accurate records for her own personal reference. A factual dispute does not present a genuine issue precluding summary judgment unless the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248 (1986). That is not the case here.