New York Work Search Record: WS5 Example

See a fictional WS5-style contact

This example shows the employer-contact fields on the New York Department of Labor's current WS5 form. The person, employer, vacancy and date are all fictional. The example.com address is not a real job listing. Use your own completed activity and actual contact details when you make a record. The form asks for the week ending date, and its employer-contact table asks for contact date, position, employer, person contacted if known, method, contact information and result if known.²

The example is a single contact, not a complete claim week. The form also has a separate area for other work-search activities. The current WS5 is marked 01/26. Open the official PDF for its full instructions.¹²

• Open the official New York WS5 form (PDF)
• Read New York's work-search record guidance

A truthful record says what you did and what you know. 'Waiting for response' is more accurate than inventing a hiring decision.

Fictional example

Fictional WS5-style entry Week ending Sunday: October 11, 2026 Date of contact: October 5, 2026 Position applied for: Office Assistant Business/employer: Maple Street Services (fictional) Person contacted: Not known Method: Employer website Contact information: https://example.com/jobs/office-assistant Result: Application submitted; waiting for response

Choose JobZone or a written record

New York's Department of Labor says that if you keep the required record online, you must use its JobZone work-search record. You can reach it through the JobZone link when claiming weekly benefits online. The alternative is the WS5 form or a similar written record containing the required information.¹ A personal tracker is not JobZone and does not automatically become a state record by being stored online.

The WS5 has a table for businesses and employers contacted and another for other work-search activities.² A written record should preserve the same relevant detail: date, employer and contact route for applications, or a clear description of a different activity. New York recommends supporting documents, such as an application acknowledgement or a copy of correspondence.¹

If you choose paper, New York says to keep copies of the records for one year and not send them unless the Department asks.¹² A JobZone entry is kept within the state's online record system. Keep the weekly benefit certification separate in your mind: maintaining a record is not itself the act of claiming that week's benefits.¹

1. Open JobZone from the official weekly claim flow if you choose the state online record.
2. For a written record, use WS5 or a similar document with all required details.
3. Keep supporting material tied to the activity it supports.
4. Provide the record to the Department when it requests it.

Record activities, not just applications

The general rule is at least three recorded work-search activities per claimed week, not three employer applications.¹ New York lists applications and interviews, but also Career Center services, job-search workshops, certain tests and other reasonable activities that may help a claimant find work.² Record the specific action and date rather than a vague label such as 'searched online.'

An interview may be an activity even if it followed an application from an earlier week. A workshop belongs in the form's other-activities area rather than being represented as an employer contact. Only record an action you actually completed, and keep whatever genuine evidence you have. The agency says it may verify contact information.¹

The sample contact above illustrates one entry only. It is not an instruction to repeat that employer or copy a fictional activity into a real benefit record.

Check exceptions and your own plan

The state lists work-search exemptions for some circumstances, including a temporary layoff with a written return date, certain union hiring-hall arrangements, approved training and jury service. It also lists an accepted genuine job offer with a start in a reasonable time.¹ Those descriptions are not a self-certification checklist. Follow what the Department has told you about your claim.

If the Department approved an individual Work Search Plan, the WS5 instructions say to complete and record what the plan requires.² The plan can affect which activities you must perform. Read that document before relying on a general minimum from this article. Ask the Department or Career Center if you do not understand how an exception or plan applies.

The record is about the week you claim, so check the Sunday week-ending date on WS5 and keep entries in the right period.² A late reply from an employer should not make you move the original application to a later week.

Keep a personal organizer without confusing it with JobZone

ApplyBrio's job search log can help you remember application dates, roles, actions, outcomes and evidence references. It can export a CSV or print your personal notes. It does not connect to JobZone, submit a weekly certification or file a Work Search Record with the New York Department of Labor.

If you rely on a written record, compare its entries with the WS5 fields before using it. If you choose the official online route, enter the activities in JobZone.¹² Keep the real evidence you have, such as a submission acknowledgement or relevant email, alongside your record. Never turn a fictional example into a claimed activity.