Work Search Form Requirements

Thank you nancym. That is one worry you put to rest for me.

I just filed my first EB on line this morning but there was no place to put work search information. I looked all over the site and couldn't find the forms.

I read somewhere that the 1st 2 weeks are exempt - is this true? Going forward, will the work search form be there when I claim my weeks?

Many thanks.....

Linda

*ADMIN EDIT - Please stay on topic within the established threads

LindaLou wrote:I just filed my first EB on line this morning but there was no place to put work search information. I looked all over the site and couldn't find the forms.

I read somewhere that the 1st 2 weeks are exempt - is this true? Going forward, will the work search form be there when I claim my weeks?

Many thanks.....

Linda

*ADMIN EDI
T - Please stay on topic within the established threads

The first two weeks are exempt from the job search requirements Linda.

They say the first 2 weeks are exempt, however, they will send you a form to fill out for the first 2 weeks. I filled it out and faxed it in just to be safe. You can NEVER be to careful when it comes to unemployment.

I just filed for 11.7 & 11.14 weeks. For some reason, it only asked for my search results for week of 11/7. When I filed 11/14, it was the same as it used to be with regular claims - didn't ask me anything about search results. I called to make sure the weeks would be processed, and the nice rep, Donna, told me it shows both weeks got processed & she hadn't heard of that happening. She said they may mail me a paper form to fill out those weeks. I asked if I could do it with her on the phone, but she said once it's processed in their system, she couldn't add anything. Also, strangely enough, for the first time when I called today, at first I got the typical "please try your call agin later click", but when I called back, I was sent to hold music, and a message saying to please wait & a representative will be with me shortly. Is AWI upgrading their system finally, or will these changes affect receiving benefits? Chances are I won't get anything they mail out since I am not living at my present address for the next few weeks due to family issues. I have heard that the post office is prohibited from forwarding AWI paperwork, even if all other mail is being sent to the address where I'm staying now. I am concerned if they do mail a paper out requesting the search results for the week of 11.14 that it doesn't raise a red flag if the letter is not forwarded but rather gets sent back to them. i imagine that could be a huge issue. Any advice, or anyone have the same thing happen where they only asked for work search results from one of the two claimed weeks?
Thanks in advance!

seahorse wrote:I just filed for 11.7 & 11.14 weeks. For some reason, it only asked for my search results for week of 11/7. When I filed 11/14, it was the same as it used to be with regular claims - didn't ask me anything about search results. I called to make sure the weeks would be processed, and the nice rep, Donna, told me it shows both weeks got processed & she hadn't heard of that happening. She said they may mail me a paper form to fill out those weeks. I asked if I could do it with her on the phone, but she said once it's processed in their system, she couldn't add anything. Also, strangely enough, for the first time when I called today, at first I got the typical "please try your call agin later click", but when I called back, I was sent to hold music, and a message saying to please wait & a representative will be with me shortly. Is AWI upgrading their system finally, or will these changes affect receiving benefits? Chances are I won't get anything they mail out since I am not living at my present address for the next few weeks due to family issues. I have heard that the post office is prohibited from forwarding AWI paperwork, even if all other mail is being sent to the address where I'm staying now. I am concerned if they do mail a paper out requesting the search results for the week of 11.14 that it doesn't raise a red flag if the letter is not forwarded but rather gets sent back to them. i imagine that could be a huge issue. Any advice, or anyone have the same thing happen where they only asked for work search results from one of the two claimed weeks?
Thanks in advance!

That happened to my friend, but it was because he only had one week left of benefits therefore he only filed one week. As far as the address issue if you can open a P.O. Box where you can receive your mail on time it would be best for you. As you know AWI does not forward any mail to you, if you are not at the address that is on your claim records. Another thing if AWI receives any mail back because you are not at that address they will not issue a check until you clear your address issue up with them.
Please keep in mind that I’m no expert so please double check with the proper party, OK, Good luck.

I received full benefits for the week ending 11/14 without having to submit work search information. I think that is because when the reprogramming is finished that week's benefit will be deducted from my Tier 3 claim which will not require the information to be reported each time you claim. Unfortunately, it has been my experience time and time again that the reps on the customer service line are very poorly trained and are prone to giving incorrect information. Since you are still receiving EB benefits you will not have to submit an application for Tier 3 as AWI is doing automatic transitions for claimants in your class.

Hey,

I have been collecting unemployment since february 1st 2009. Never once since day one have i ever been asked to show proof that i have been looking for jobs. Obviously i have been applying for jobs daily! but i have a friend who was also collecting and never had to enter proof either! what gives? is this an error? should i be concerned?

Thanks!

Jessica, the work search requirements are directed towards those who are on the EB tier, in which you would need to fill out the places applied every two weeks online, before you could claim the weeks for the period.

Unemployed In Orlando wrote:Jessica, the work search requirements are directed towards those who are on the EB tier, in which you would need to fill out the places applied every two weeks online, before you could claim the weeks for the period.

Ok thank you!!

Hi guys,

As you know, AWI announced recently it would begin conducting work-search verifications on a spot-check basis. I'm looking for people who have had encountered this. Is it delaying payments in any significant way? Are you having trouble reaching people at AWI to report your work-search activities? Generally, how has this development affected you?

Reach me at jstratton@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5379.

Jim Stratton
Orlando Sentinel

On previous pages, CONFLICTING INFO about the EB Work Search Requirement has been given by various posters to this thread.
One person says: ONE search (per day) on each of 2 different days, which equals TWO searches PER WEEK.
Another person then posts: TWO searches (per day) on each of 2 different days, which equals FOUR searches PER WEEK.

So, WHICH IS CORRECT??
It would be a hell of a thing to be denied Benefits due to incorrect info coming from THIS SITE, which is one of the Most Trustworthy Sites on the entire Internet.
(And, Yes, I realize that ANY misinterpretation by posters to this Site is likely due to AWI never making it clear, since Day One of the EB program being instituted.)

Does anyone know what is REALLY true? Which interpretation is the CORRECT one?

Hi Michael,

Seems like your question should have a simple answer, right? Well, politics is never simple, and politics is involved here.

I went through my entire EB period of filing with the instructions to list online at least two different work search records per week and each had to be on separate days, total = two per week. I sometimes listed more than that, but at least those two per week. If we all hadn't done that, supposedly we were automatically flagged for interruption of benefits until the case was reviewed. I never heard anything from AWI about two per day, seems illogical to me--why two on two days instead of spread out over the week? EB is a federal law with state implementation, and those online reports are required under the federal law.

BUT, with the ever increasing pressure on AWI from the governor and the legislature to "crack down" on us lazy, drug addicted, shiftless unemployed Floridians, AWI is reaffirming their policy--which has always been in effect-- that people getting benefits need to keep records of all work searches, not just those for EB, but regular and EUC as well, even though those are not currently required to be reported online. Those work searches are subject to random checks by AWI; the only reason we didn't hear about too many people getting these random reviews before is because AWI was overwhelmed just keeping up with all the new claims for the past few years, much less dealing with accountability.

So unless the official reporting requirement has changed recently, it has always been two per week and each of those on separate days. If anyone here is currently collecting EB and has been specifically directed to other official wording from AWI, I would go with that, (the call-center people, as opposed to the regular staff in Tallahassee, tend to screw up on these details) but--again a but-- bearing in mind the general recommendation posted about random checks:

"The agency recommends that you contact at least five potential employers each week." --dated March 24, 2011. At this link:
http://www.floridajobs.org/unemployment/hottopics.html
Note that this announcement was made about the same time Scott and Tallahassee were decimating the unemployment system in the last legislative session.

Personally, if I were you, I'd keep a spreadsheet (or just a digital list) with 5 per week on separate days to be safe. That may seem hard to find, but there are more listings now, even though low-paid, and you can list all the blind ads that have no phone numbers by listing the url instead. The quote says give the phone number of each, but the web address will do if no phone is listed. Not all the people at AWI are complete idiots; they know they are dealing with an online job world.

For anyone having a lot of trouble even finding jobs to apply to, here's a tip. There are many virtual jobs listed out there now. Many pay competitive rates--with India, ha-ha--but it's an application opportunity if there are no jobs at all in your community. Online sources like Virtual Vocations list hundreds of these every day. The actual telecommute jobs are hard to get, but they can't say you're not trying if you apply for them. Virtual Vocations and some others charge a monthly fee for access. You can either just pay the fee, or here's another tip: grab a long section of their ad's text and put the whole thing in quotes for a Google search; not always, but very often you will find that same ad listed for free somewhere else, like on Craigslist or even the employer's website, where you can apply without the fee.

You can also find these virtual job listings by going to some of the regular jobs clearing house sites, like Indeed.com, or even just Google, and do searches that include the word "telecommute" or "virtual" plus some word that relates to your skills. Who knows, you might even get lucky and pick up some extra cash from one of these sources. You'd have to report it as an odd job if temporary, but it could extend out your benefits if you would normally exhaust them before the end of this year when all the extended benefits programs end for everyone.

Just so everyone knows -and I found out the hard way- when they say that you must have 5 contacts on your work search form or your payment may be reduced or denied, they mean reduced to $0.

I think this is an extremely misrepresentative statement. I called the hotline and they had no explanation for it, just that less than 5 contacts means your claim is denied.

Proxyon wrote:Just so everyone knows -and I found out the hard way- when they say that you must have 5 contacts on your work search form or your payment may be reduced or denied, they mean reduced to $0.

I think this is an extremely misrepresentative statement. I called the hotline and they had no explanation for it, just that less than 5 contacts means your claim is denied.

Thanks for the update, Proxyon, and the warning.

I have a problem with this work search requirement and wondering if anyone else has the same problem as well? The first two weeks after I was laid off it was no problem because obviously I was intent on applying for everything I possibly could in my eligible category.
The problem began after the second week as I realized there were not 5 new jobs that I qualified for coming open every week. I'm a straight shooter, do everything by the book. I don't fabricate anything nor lie. If I am honest I will not be able to satisfy the requirement of 5 contacts per week. Acutally It's already happened this week. I was able to satisfy my second week claimed due to a one stop visit. However my first week claimed consisted of only 2 successful contacts and of course yesterday I received only 1 week of unemployment.
It appears they have chosen to penalize the honest folks out there in which are credible in their effort and intents knowing full well we will not honestly be able to satisfy this requirement.
Is it just me? Aren't there many more of you? Are they forcing us to applying beyond the limits of what we are actually qualified for? Wouldn't that be insane? What could possibly be in their minds? What do they think they are achieving? The only achievement I can think of is that employers databases will now inundated with unqualified applicants.
ANYONE? Is it just me? Any suggestions of how we can get this message across to the proper legislators? Most of them don't seem to truly read emails from the public.
If you do the math of the amount of available jobs in any specific region and then compare that to the amount of unemployed individuals in that region you definitely do NOT come with 5 possible weekly contacts per recipient.
That 20/mo. X total # of unemployed recipients. Isn't that 20 available jobs per month for every unemployed recipient?

abanikko wrote:
..Is it just me? Aren't there many more of you? Are they forcing us to applying beyond the limits of what we are actually qualified for? Wouldn't that be insane? What could possibly be in their minds? What do they think they are achieving? The only achievement I can think of is that employers databases will now inundated with unqualified applicants.
ANYONE? Is it just me? Any suggestions of how we can get this message across to the proper legislators? Most of them don't seem to truly read emails from the public...?

It's not just you. But don't torture yourself unnecessarily about this. There are ways to find 5 jobs and make 5 applications (or more) and not jeopardize your benefits while still being totally truthful. And forget about trying to reason with politicians; I've given up on this state (at least until after the elections) as far as expecting common sense. They have it in their heads that all those totally bogus jobs listed, such as repeat listings, "pay per click" jobs, sales-with-rare-commissions jobs, scams for jobs, ads for schooling, etc., that are clogging the databases represent actual job opportunities, when they don't. And no appeal to logic will change their minds it seems.

So meanwhile, you have to survive until you can actually find real work. Depending on your field, that could be a while. I myself no longer am receiving benefits, but I've been through the whole drill, and even though some of the rules have changed, there are still ways to deal with your requirements.

Here are some suggestions:

1) Unless the rules have changed more than I am aware of, there is nothing to stop you from applying for jobs outside your area, part-time jobs, contract jobs, temp jobs, or online/remote jobs. When I couldn't find any local jobs to apply for I actually got some responses from out-of-town companies. You may be tied to property or family and can't move, but the chances of your actually being offered one of those out-of-town jobs when you're in competition with all the unemployed locals in other areas is slim, trust me, very slim. If that actually happened, you'd either be fortunate and move to take the job if it actually was worth the moving expenses, or be forced to refuse and justify the refusal to AWI if needed. Chances are, it wouldn't come to that. And you might even be lucky enough to get a paid for trip for the job interview if you did qualify.

2) Understand how unreasonably inflated most job descriptions are. HR often doesn't even understand the requirements and so they throw everything but the kitchen sink into a job description, hoping to get a wonderwoman or superman if they're lucky in this "employers' market." Of course you need to apply for jobs at least remotely within your area of experience, but don't be afraid to apply for a job that you don't have every single qualification for, especially if the skills they list are not that specific. And you never know, if your resume does make it through the digital meat grinder of elimination and a real person actually reads it, there might be an opening at that company that is a better fit for you that isn't even advertised. They'll keep your resume on file if nothing is there right away if it's of interest to them.

3) Online and telecommute jobs. Use the search term "remote" or "telecommute" in any general search database.
Even if you are needing to go to a library or other public place to use a computer, there is nothing really stopping you from applying for online work, which is really, really growing in the past few years. Some jobs are very specialized, like software programming, but other jobs need only basic computer skills. And if you're using this forum, you have basic computer skills. These jobs often don't pay very much (except for specialized programmers and the like), and often they are temp or part-time, and the competition for them is national, sometimes global, but that doesn't stop you from applying and satisfying the requirements of the state. AWI really just wants to see that you are trying, and you never know when you might get at least a little work that could extend your benefit time longer by reporting part-time work, or it might even lead to a better job.

Two of the biggest sites for telecommute work that is filtered specifically for that are Virtual Vocations and Flexjobs.com. Both of these are subscription sites, but not too expensive. Sometimes you can Google a few phrases in the job descriptions and find the original job posting for free. That's not exactly ethical to these sites, but it's a way of testing whether the actual jobs are still available or might have more requirements than are listed in their brief descriptions. My preferred site at the moment is Flexjobs.com, but there are many other ways to search for telecommute jobs on other sites. For example, you can enter your job title or keyword plus "remote" or "telecommute" in the location slot at Indeed.com to try to find such jobs. Or just put those words in a Google search box, but beware of the scam ads that might come up at the top before you look through the possible sites. You might be surprised just how many and the variety of jobs out there on the net.

4) Don't rely on just a few online search sites that you might become accustomed to. Workforce1 job listings (or whatever the state job site is called in your area) sometimes have good local jobs, but I've found them to be sometimes a bit out of date. And Monster.com and Careerbuilder are good but not all-inclusive. The absolute best general job portal to search for many listings I've found over the years is Indeed.com - http://www.indeed.com/ (I don't work for them!) And it's free to use, even if you sign up to keep a profile with them. Even Craigslist is a source of local jobs, but be careful of the scams. These are usually "blind" ads, so your "contact" is the email address. AWI may be strict in some ways, but they do realize that most jobs are advertised online these days, and they know that the majority of jobs do not list a person's name for contact.

5) Don't confine yourself to applying for jobs that are advertised; many are not. In the same way that you can walk into a store or office and ask if there are jobs open, you can also compose a generic cover letter and resume that you can send to any company, anywhere, asking if there are any openings in your field, and if not would they please keep you in mind for the future. In some cases that might actually be more productive in finding leads than a lot of routine applications.

Get out the phone book, the online phone book, and you can either blind call a company or send them your resume with a cover letter. Even Indeed.com doesn't list every single job; some companies list jobs only on their own websites or hired recruiting sites where you have to log in and create a profile and stored resume to apply for current or future openings, or sometimes just reply to a posted email address. This applies even for rather menial jobs. I recently stepped a guy through McDonald's complex online application process, just so he could go back to the local manager who wanted to hire him for general part-time maintenance but needed him to fill out the complete online application and personal profile first.

Also, many of these companies with their own online databases of applicants make it possible for managers and company recruiters to search for candidates even before a job is posted, especially when they need temp workers right away. Some allow you to create a job notification by email when any job comes up that fits your profile of skills. Just look for the "jobs" or "careers" link at the top or bottom of their web pages. Sometimes these applications are quirky and tedious, even include some basic psychological testing for the larger companies, take time, and you may never get an acknowledgment that you applied (although usually you get at least a form letter email when you apply, and you keep track of your login info for future applications or changes in your resume. It can become a full-time job just doing these applications online!

I don't know what your field is, or how long it's been since you had to look for work. But the whole work search process is a different world now than just a few years ago. Even the corner deli requires you to go online to get their application form, just to deliver it to them on your next trip!

I've been volunteering at a soup kitchen in Broward County that provides other social services, such as the computer lab that I volunteered to monitor, and I've had to help quite a number of people with a range of skills from very few to high level, and often I have to make them aware of just how much a job search now depends on using a lot of internet tools to both track down jobs and make those applications. (And yes, we have had success with finding work for a number of clients.)

So don't cheat yourself out of benefits that you deserve for having worked and then been laid off. It's not your fault that there is only one opening for every 4 or 5 applicants overall. But sometimes you have to dig to find those jobs.

Lastly, I really do see an increase in job openings in the last year, but especially in the last few months, at least in some areas, especially in IT or web-related jobs, but some others as well, even if in many cases the salaries are much lower. But I also realize some types of jobs will probably never come back, or at least not soon enough, and some of the unemployed will have to be especially creative to see where their skills might translate into different jobs than they might have imagined they'd find.

I hope some of these suggestions might be helpful to anyone here, and good luck.

Thanks so much for that great acknowledgement of what I thought to be. So if you're honest, follow exactly what they say they want you to do the conclusion will probably be the elimination of your benefits.

You mentioned all the repeat jobs in the state database. In my area there were 67 manufacturing jobs, 26 of which were repeats.
Now here's something that blew my mind! I went to the page that details my area profile data being "Manatee County". It say's there are 3,476 openings. I thought I would click on that and just start browsing through them and suddenly I come across a whole page of things for sale, garage sales etc.....These are not job but rather just copied classified ads from the local newspapers.
If they won't listen what would happen if I applied for a local garage sale as there is a tab to apply? I thought that might be a way to get their attention but also figure they would probably say " You knoew full and well that wasn't a job" and they have the room for the glitch as nothing is perfect.
But the problem is these are the numbers they are using to justify their legislative actions, correct? I don't know but I'm thinking of canvassing media outlets to see if there is any of them actually willing to report on this and possibly even embarass the state by showing the screenshots of the refirgerators for sale, the garage sale ads all of which can be applied for.
Next, what if I applied for jobs requiring more than my qualification calls for? I don't have a degree but am into electronics at an intermediate level. Would it be unethical to apply for jobs requiring degrees even though I don't have one?

The jobs out of area I totally agree with you and will follow through with that. I just wish they would realize I really do want to work as unemployment comp. will put me and my family in the street. So I'll always apply for absolutely everything I can in hopes to better our situation. Just a couple of weeks ago I applied for a job that was $3.70/hr. less than the job I was laid off from. So it's not like I'm not willing to make extreme sacrifices.
No matter what we do or what the reality might be I guess it is to their political advantage to paint all of us the lazy, entitlement suckers enjoying our lavish life on $275/wk rather than to face up to their responsibilities.
The bottom line is we are all fall guys for everything else that is broken. It's amazing that all of a sudden they think that in a few short years millions of people have suddenly become lazy, isn't it? None of these people are qualified to be running our government along with all the HR reps who truly are not qualified to know exactly who is qualified for what. It's part of the club mentality. These HR reps or whomever has made the decisions to use these screening programs for applicants are ignorant enough to think they can eliminate the human element, THEN go out and tell other government agencies the problem they have is that they can't find qualified people? Yep! I would love to get the right media attention on these issues to expose the real ignorance practiced within the business world adn government officials.

Hello all,

does anyone know if using job adds that you have responded to from craigslist will suffice as a work search?

John in Orlando wrote:Hello all,

does anyone know if using job adds that you have responded to from craigslist will suffice as a work search?

I'm no longer receiving unemployment benefits, so I don't know if anything like that has changed since I was claiming, but I used a number of Craigslist ads for search requirements when I was. The email reply as you know is often the long automated looking Craigslist number, but I'd use that as the contact if no other contact info was given. And the actual url for the individual ad is the listing address. I didn't use solely Craigslist, but it would always be a mix. There are plenty of other "blind" ads like that out there that a person can apply for. A job ad is a job ad. And it was never questioned.

Whenever I had any lingering doubt about whether any kind of claims listing would be questionable, I would always try to provide more than the minimum number required, just to be safe.

If anyone has any info or experience that's different with Craigslist ads, please post.