diff --git a/app/core/worker.py b/app/core/worker.py
index fd32e34..d8c45b0 100644
--- a/app/core/worker.py
+++ b/app/core/worker.py
@@ -21,6 +21,16 @@ def _get_redis_settings() -> RedisSettings:
 async def on_startup(ctx: dict[str, Any]) -> None:
     """Called when worker starts."""
     logger.info("ARQ worker starting...")
+    # Register search providers (normally done by app startup)
+    try:
+        from app.core.db import get_session_factory
+        from app.plugins.builtins.unified_search.provider_registry import auto_register_providers
+        factory = get_session_factory()
+        async with factory() as db:
+            await auto_register_providers(db)
+        logger.info("Search providers registered for worker")
+    except Exception:
+        logger.warning("Failed to register search providers in worker", exc_info=True)
 
 
 async def on_shutdown(ctx: dict[str, Any]) -> None: