How do I report my 3 job search activities in ESD's weekly claim portal?

Here's a step-by-step guide to file your weekly claim with job search activities: 1. Log in to your SecureAccess Washington (SAW) account 2. Select the "Unemployment Benefits" option 3. Click on "File a weekly claim" (should be on the main dashboard) 4. Answer all the eligibility questions truthfully 5. When you reach the job search section, there will be a prompt asking if you completed your job search activities 6. Select "Yes" and you'll get a page where you can enter details for each job search 7. For each activity, you'll need to provide: - Date of contact - Employer name or activity description - Contact method (online, in-person, etc.) - Results/outcome 8. After entering all 3 activities, continue through the remaining questions 9. Review everything and submit Make sure you're keeping detailed records of all job search activities in case ESD audits you later!

i had the SAME PROBLEM last month!!! the esd website is THE WORST and so confusing. took me like 3 tries to figure out where to put in my job search stuff. they should make it more obvious where to go!!! i almost missed my payment deadline cuz of this!!

One thing to keep in mind - if you're on standby status or have been approved for Commissioner-Approved Training, you might not need to do the job search activities at all. The system should automatically skip that section. But if you're on regular UI, then yes, you need to report 3 job search activities each week as described above.

When I tried filing my weekly claim last Thursday, the website was down for maintenance and I couldn't access anything. Then when I finally got in on Friday, it looked completely different from the week before! ESD really needs to stop changing the interface every few months. How are we supposed to keep up?

I struggled with this for HOURS last month and finally gave up trying to call ESD directly because I kept getting disconnected. I ended up using Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an actual ESD agent who walked me through the whole process. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 The agent explained that sometimes the job search entry section doesn't appear right away and you have to refresh the page. Also, if you're using a mobile device, the job search entry fields might not display properly.

Make sure you're doing QUALIFYING job search activities too! Not all activities count toward your 3 required each week. For example, just looking at job postings online without applying doesn't count. Here are activities that DO count: - Submitting job applications - Having job interviews - Going to WorkSource workshops - Meeting with a career counselor - Taking skills assessments - Creating accounts on job boards like Indeed or LinkedIn - Attending job fairs ESD is doing more audits in 2025, so keep detailed records of everything!

can you tell me where u even find the login page? i bookmarked it before but lost all my bookmarks when my computer crashed last week

Pro tip: If you're having trouble finding the job search section, try clearing your browser cache and cookies first. I had the same issue where the job search fields weren't showing up, and it turned out my browser was loading an old cached version of the page. After clearing cache and logging back in, everything appeared correctly. Also, make sure you're using a supported browser - I've heard Chrome and Firefox work best with the ESD system. Internet Explorer sometimes has display issues with the newer interface.

I just went through this exact process yesterday and wanted to add a few more tips that helped me! After following the steps everyone mentioned above, I found that the job search section sometimes takes a few seconds to load completely - don't panic if you don't see the entry fields right away. Also, when entering your job search activities, be as specific as possible. Instead of just writing "applied online," I put something like "submitted application through company career portal for Customer Service Representative position." The system seems to accept more detailed descriptions better. One last thing - if you get an error message while submitting, don't hit the back button! Instead, try refreshing the page and starting over. I learned that the hard way when I lost all my entered information. Good luck everyone!

I just wanted to jump in and say THANK YOU to everyone who shared their tips here! I was literally pulling my hair out trying to figure this out last week. I followed the step-by-step guide that Luca posted and it worked perfectly. The key for me was realizing I needed to be on the main dashboard - I was also looking in completely the wrong section like Zara mentioned. One small addition to what others have said: when you get to the job search activity entry page, make sure you fill out ALL the required fields for each activity. I initially left some fields blank thinking they were optional, but the system wouldn't let me proceed until everything was completed. Also, if you're doing virtual job fairs or online networking events, those count too! I wasn't sure about those but an ESD rep confirmed they're valid job search activities. Really appreciate this community for helping each other navigate this maze of a system. We're all in this together! 💪

Hey everyone! As someone who's been dealing with ESD's system for a while now, I wanted to add a few things that might help others. One issue I ran into that I haven't seen mentioned yet is that sometimes the job search section will appear but then disappear when you try to enter information - if this happens, try logging out completely and logging back in rather than just refreshing the page. Also, for anyone who's still confused about what counts as a valid job search activity, I called ESD directly (took forever to get through!) and they told me that creating or updating your resume on sites like Monster, CareerBuilder, or even uploading it to a company's talent network counts as one activity. Just make sure you save the confirmation email or take a screenshot showing the date you updated it. One more tip: if you're having trouble with the mobile version, the desktop site works much better in my experience. The mobile interface seems to have more glitches, especially when trying to enter multiple job search activities. Hope this helps someone avoid the frustration I went through! 🤞

I just want to echo what everyone else has said - this thread is incredibly helpful! I've been on unemployment for about 2 months now and I STILL get confused by the ESD website sometimes. The interface seems to change slightly every few weeks which doesn't help. One thing I learned the hard way that might help others: make sure you complete your weekly claim filing on the same day each week if possible. I used to do it randomly throughout my filing period, but I noticed the system seems more stable and responsive when I file consistently on the same day (I do mine every Sunday morning). Also, I keep a simple notebook by my computer where I jot down my job search activities as I do them throughout the week - that way I'm not scrambling to remember what I did when it's time to file. The anxiety around making sure everything is filled out correctly is so real! But reading everyone's tips here has made me feel much more confident about the process. We really do need to look out for each other since the system can be so frustrating to navigate alone.

As someone who just went through this exact same struggle last week, I can't stress enough how helpful this thread has been! I was about to give up and risk missing my filing deadline when I found all these tips. One thing I'd add that saved me: if you're using a work computer or public computer, make sure you're not in "incognito" or "private browsing" mode. The ESD system doesn't seem to work well with private browsing and some of the job search entry fields won't save properly. I wasted an entire afternoon trying to figure out why my information kept disappearing before I realized this was the issue. Also, for anyone still having trouble, the ESD website has a "technical requirements" page that lists the minimum browser versions and settings needed. It's buried pretty deep in their help section, but it might be worth checking if you're still having display issues. Really grateful to everyone who shared their experiences here - it's made what felt impossible seem totally manageable! 🙌

Just wanted to add my experience from this week - I finally got through the job search reporting process successfully! Following everyone's advice here, I used Chrome browser, logged in on Sunday morning, and made sure to wait for the page to fully load before entering anything. One small tip I discovered: when you're entering your job search activities, the "Date of Contact" field is really picky about the format. It has to be MM/DD/YYYY format - I kept trying to enter it as MM/DD/YY and it would give me an error. Also, in the "Results/Outcome" field, even if you haven't heard back yet, you still need to put something like "No response yet" or "Application submitted, awaiting reply" rather than leaving it blank. I kept a simple spreadsheet this week with columns for Date, Company, Position, Method, and Outcome, and it made the whole process so much smoother. No more scrambling to remember what I did! This community has been absolutely amazing - I went from being completely lost and panicked to feeling confident about the weekly filing process. Thank you all for sharing your knowledge and making this so much less stressful! 💙

Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to this thread! As someone who just created my ESD account last week, I was dreading having to figure out the job search reporting part. Reading through all these detailed experiences and tips has been incredibly reassuring. I'm planning to follow the step-by-step approach that Luca outlined, use Chrome browser like Natasha suggested, and keep a spreadsheet with the columns that Lilah mentioned. The tip about the MM/DD/YYYY date format is especially helpful - I definitely would have gotten frustrated with error messages without knowing that detail! One quick question for the group: does anyone know if there's a time limit on how long you have to complete the weekly claim once you start it? I want to make sure I have enough time to carefully enter all my job search information without rushing and making mistakes. This community is such a lifesaver for navigating what feels like an unnecessarily complicated system. Looking forward to successfully filing my first claim this week! 🤞

I'm completely new to the unemployment system and this thread has been absolutely incredible! I just moved to Washington state last month and had to file for unemployment after my job ended unexpectedly. The ESD website has been so overwhelming - I literally stared at the screen for an hour yesterday trying to figure out where to even begin. Reading through everyone's step-by-step instructions and real experiences has given me hope that I can actually navigate this system successfully. I'm going to print out Luca's guide and follow it exactly, use the Chrome browser tip, and definitely set up that spreadsheet with all the columns before I even log in. The community support here is amazing - it's such a relief to know I'm not the only one who found this process confusing! I feel like I went from having no clue what I was doing to having a solid game plan. Planning to tackle my first weekly claim filing this Sunday morning when the system is hopefully more stable. Wish me luck! 🤞 Thank you all for being so generous with sharing your knowledge and experiences. This is exactly the kind of help people need when they're already stressed about being unemployed.

As someone who's been helping friends and family navigate the ESD system for the past year, I wanted to add a few more practical tips that might help newcomers: **Before you even log in:** - Have a pen and paper ready to jot down any error messages you might encounter - Make sure you have at least 1 hour of uninterrupted time - Close all other browser tabs to avoid any conflicts **During the filing process:** - If you see a spinning wheel or loading icon, DON'T click anything else - just wait - The "Save and Continue" buttons sometimes take 10-15 seconds to respond - If you get kicked out mid-process, don't panic - your partial information usually saves **Red flags to watch for:** - If the page looks completely blank, try Ctrl+F5 to hard refresh - If buttons appear greyed out, try scrolling down - sometimes there are required fields below - If you get an "unexpected error" message, wait 10 minutes before trying again I've noticed ESD has been making small improvements to the system lately, but it's still far from perfect. The most important thing is to be patient with yourself and the technology. This community has your back if you get stuck! Also keeping a backup email folder with all your job application confirmations has saved me during audits. Stay organized and don't let the system stress you out more than necessary! 🌟