Trump Administration Proposes Five Weekly Job Searches for Unemployment Benefits Nationwide

On Monday, the Trump administration put forward a federal rule that would change what an unemployed American has to do each week to keep collecting jobless benefits. The Department of Labor proposal, scheduled to appear in the Federal Register on Tuesday, would require anyone applying for or receiving unemployment aid to complete at least five unique work searches every week.

That number is well above what most of the country asks today. Many states require two or three qualifying searches a week. Only four states set the bar at five. Some require just one work search activity to qualify for benefits. The proposal would replace that patchwork with a single national minimum.

The Labor Department's argument rests on consistency. In its proposal, the agency said a national floor would improve program integrity and strengthen labor market attachment. It said the action is needed to reduce inconsistencies in state requirements that go beyond what local labor markets would explain, and to hold states accountable for running a program meant to provide temporary wage replacement while people are actively seeking work. The department also said the variation causes real problems: confusion for claimants, uneven enforcement when allowable activities are not clearly defined, and a greater chance that eligible people fail the requirements simply because expectations are unclear. It added that differences in how states notify people of the rules can lead them to do things that do not help them get rehired or do not satisfy the state's rules.

The proposal is not limited to applications to employers. Contacting a prospective employer would count, but so would registering with or contacting a job placement agency or a union. States could name other qualifying activities. They could also adjust the weekly threshold to fit local labor market conditions through a points-based system, assigning point values to different activities and requiring claimants to accumulate at least five points per benefit week. Under such a system, a single activity could earn multiple points.

Labor advocates are not persuaded. Michele Evermore, senior director of economic security and worker transitions at the National Employment Law Project, a worker advocacy group, told CBS News in a statement that the change would be devastating to claimants who may not have five search options in every week they are unemployed. She said it would also likely cost states hundreds of thousands of dollars. Nearly all states, she said, would have to change their claimant intake forms and the technology behind them, which she called a costly fix, and many would have to rewrite their laws to comply.

Evermore also argued that the rule would disadvantage applicants who already struggle to navigate unemployment systems. Employers, she said, want candidates enthusiastic about their opportunities, not people ticking boxes on a work search form.

The Labor Department acknowledged that costs could rise temporarily while states and applicants adjust to the new requirement. It maintained that the change is needed so eligibility rules apply consistently across the country.

The public will have 60 days after the proposal is published to submit comments. What states and advocates say in that window, and whether the points-based option softens the five-search threshold in practice, will shape what any final rule looks like.