ESD claim shows random employer I barely worked for - which separation reason to choose?

This is actually pretty common. For the dropdown reason, select "Still working, reduced hours" since you were never formally separated. For dates, put the first day you worked (March 2, 2025) as the start date and the last day you worked (April 7, 2025) as the end date. Then in the explanation box, write exactly what you explained here - that you only worked 5 days total as a fill-in, were never a regular employee, and your main separation was from your primary FedEx contractor job. ESD deals with this type of situation all the time.

i had somethin similar last year when i did 2 days at a warehouse. ESD made me verify with that employer even tho i barely worked there. whole thing is confusing af

You should definitely select "Still Working Part-Time" NOT "Still working, reduced hours" - those are different options with different implications. The dates should be the very first day you worked (March 2) as the start date and leave the end date BLANK since technically you could still work there occasionally. Then make sure to explain in the comments that you only worked 5 total days as a fill-in and were never a regular employee. Also, make sure to report ANY earnings from either employer when filing weekly claims - even one day of work needs to be reported for the week it occurred.

OMG I JUST WENT THROUGH THIS EXACT THING!! Except mine was with a restaurant where I picked up a few shifts. Ended up being a huge headache because that employer didn't respond to ESD! My claim got stuck in adjudication for 6 weeks and I couldn't get anyone on the phone to explain the situation. I called over 200 times!! I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an ESD agent. They have this system that holds your place in line and calls you when an agent is available. Saved me hours of redial hell. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 Once I got through, the agent was able to override that employer issue since they were such a small part of my overall wages. Definitely recommend getting on the phone with a real person rather than trying to figure out the online system.

honestly just pick any reason, the important part is explaining in the comments. ive filed like 4 times and esd always messes something up anyway lol. they care more about your main job that laid you off

Won't this employer be listed on your claim because they paid UI taxes on your behalf? I'd suggest contacting them and asking how they reported your employment. If they listed you as a temporary worker through the state, that might affect how you should respond on your claim form. I've seen the dropdown options change over time, but there used to be something like "temporary work completed" that might apply here.

Don't overthink this too much. ESD just needs to verify you didn't quit or get fired from a job. Since you worked such a small amount for this company, it likely won't affect your benefit amount much if at all. The important part is explaining clearly in the comments section. I'd personally select "Lack of work/Laid off" since that most accurately describes that they didn't have more work for you after those fill-in days. For dates, just use March 2 to April 7. In the explanation field, specify exactly how many days you worked (5 total) and that this was just fill-in work while you were employed full-time elsewhere. Your actual benefit calculation will be based primarily on your main job if that's where the vast majority of your hours were worked.

One more thing I should clarify - when you file your weekly claims, if you worked ANY days during a week (for ANY employer), you need to report those hours and earnings for that specific week. This is separate from the employer separation issue we're discussing, but equally important to get right.