myjobcontacts › States › Alabama

How many job searches do you need for unemployment in Alabama?

What counts as a work search in Alabama

• Applying in person, ideally with the person who does the hiring
• Calling an employer about a job, best when you also make some in-person contacts
• Applying online or by email, where that is normal in your field
• Sending a resume, where that is the normal way to apply in your field
• Contacting a private employment agency (this does not replace your other contacts)
• Contacting a former employer that may rehire you

What doesn’t count

• Contacting the same employer again in a later week, unless that employer told you since your first contact that it is hiring
• Signing up with an employment agency by itself

Same employer twice? Your later work search reports cannot list the same employer again unless that employer has told you since your first contact that it is hiring.

More on this in what counts as a work search contact.

How to report your job contacts

Each week, when you file your weekly certification, you enter your work search contacts. The handbook also tells you to log your work search in AlabamaWorks or at a Career Center at least once a week. Keep your own notes too, in case your contacts are reviewed.

When: File your weekly certification each week, from 12:01 a.m. Sunday to 5:00 p.m. Friday (Central Time), for the week that just ended. After 5:00 p.m. Friday it is late.

Where: Claimant Portal (weekly certification).

When the search starts: Every week you claim benefits, unless you were told your work search is waived.

Keep a work search log

ADOW doesn’t have its own log form that we could find. Write down the date, employer, how you contacted them, the job, who you talked to and what happened.

The free myjobcontacts app keeps the same details. Prefer paper? Use the free printable work search log.

Who doesn’t have to search

• You are on a temporary or seasonal layoff from your regular employer that is not expected to last more than 8 weeks
• You are in training approved by the department
• You are a union member in good standing who gets work only through a union hiring hall and you are registered with the hall
• You are on jury duty
• The department told you that you do not need to search for work

Union members: If you are a union member in good standing who gets work only through a union hiring hall, you do not have to register with the Career Center, and your work search can be limited to staying registered with your hiring hall.

See work search exemptions for how these work in other states.

Reviews, audits and RESEA

By law, the department randomly reviews at least 5% of the work search contacts people report each week. It may check with the employers you listed.

What to expect: unemployment work search audits.

If you miss your number

If you do not report the required work search contacts, you can be denied benefits for that week. Giving false information on a weekly certification can lead to prosecution and paying money back.

Sign up with the job bank

If you live in Alabama, you must register with the Alabama Career Center system (AlabamaWorks). Your registration lasts 90 days, then you must renew it. It must stay active in every week you draw benefits. If you live in another state, register with the job service there. AlabamaWorks.

Questions people in Alabama ask

How many job searches are required for unemployment in Alabama?

You must contact at least 3 possible employers each week you claim benefits. You report these contacts when you file your weekly certification.

What counts as a work search in Alabama?

Applying in person, ideally with the person who does the hiring; Calling an employer about a job, best when you also make some in-person contacts; Applying online or by email, where that is normal in your field; Sending a resume, where that is the normal way to apply in your field, and 2 more on the list above. Check your notice for anything your state added for you.

Do I have to keep a work search log in Alabama?

Each week, when you file your weekly certification, you enter your work search contacts. The handbook also tells you to log your work search in AlabamaWorks or at a Career Center at least once a week. Keep your own notes too, in case your contacts are reviewed.

What happens if I don’t do enough job searches in Alabama?

If you do not report the required work search contacts, you can be denied benefits for that week. Giving false information on a weekly certification can lead to prosecution and paying money back.

Who doesn’t have to look for work in Alabama?

You are on a temporary or seasonal layoff from your regular employer that is not expected to last more than 8 weeks. You are in training approved by the department. You are a union member in good standing who gets work only through a union hiring hall and you are registered with the hall. Your notice will say if this applies to you.

Does Alabama check or audit work search records?

By law, the department randomly reviews at least 5% of the work search contacts people report each week. It may check with the employers you listed.

Checked against ADOW’s own pages and rules on November 6, 2026. We could not confirm how long to keep your records, how RESEA works, when the search starts on an official page, so check your notice for those.

Sources

• ADOL notice: work search requirement effective January 1, 2023
• Ala. Admin. Code 480-4-3-.15 Availability for Work
• Alabama UC Benefit Rights and Responsibilities handbook (Nov 2025, large print)
• Alabama Department of Workforce - Unemployment Services
• HB29 (2025) engrossed text
• BillTrack50: AL HB29 status (Dead 05/14/2025) not official

Work search rules in every state

myjobcontacts is not a government website and this is not legal advice. Rules change, and your own claim notice or letter is what counts. If something here doesn’t match what your state told you, follow your state.