diff --git a/node/consensus/global/event_distributor.go b/node/consensus/global/event_distributor.go
index 64e2470..cb21579 100644
--- a/node/consensus/global/event_distributor.go
+++ b/node/consensus/global/event_distributor.go
@@ -116,7 +116,7 @@ func (e *GlobalConsensusEngine) eventDistributorLoop(
 								self, effectiveSeniority := e.allocationContext()
 								// Still reconcile allocations even when all workers appear
 								// allocated - this clears stale filters that no longer match
-								// prover allocations on-chain.
+								// prover allocations in the registry.
 								e.reconcileWorkerAllocations(data.Frame.Header.FrameNumber, self)
 								e.checkExcessPendingJoins(self, data.Frame.Header.FrameNumber)
 								e.logAllocationStatusOnly(ctx, data, self, effectiveSeniority)
@@ -279,7 +279,7 @@ func (e *GlobalConsensusEngine) eventDistributorLoop(
 const pendingFilterGraceFrames = 720
 
 // proposalTimeoutFrames is the number of frames to wait for a join proposal
-// to appear on-chain before clearing the worker's filter. If a proposal is
+// to appear in the registry before clearing the worker's filter. If a proposal is
 // submitted but never lands (e.g., network issues, not included in frame),
 // we should reset the filter so the worker can try again.
 const proposalTimeoutFrames = 10
@@ -480,7 +480,8 @@ func (e *GlobalConsensusEngine) evaluateForProposals(
 	} else if len(proposalDescriptors) != 0 && !allowProposals {
 		e.logger.Info(
 			"skipping join proposals",
-			zap.String("reason", "all workers already assigned filters"),
+			zap.String("reason", "all workers have local filters but some may not be allocated in registry"),
+			zap.Int("unallocated_shards", len(proposalDescriptors)),
 			zap.Uint64("frame_number", data.Frame.Header.FrameNumber),
 		)
 	}
@@ -636,6 +637,11 @@ func (e *GlobalConsensusEngine) reconcileWorkerAllocations(
 		// Immediately clear workers whose allocations were rejected
 		// (no grace period needed - the rejection is definitive)
 		if _, rejected := rejectedFilters[string(worker.Filter)]; rejected {
+			e.logger.Info(
+				"clearing rejected worker filter",
+				zap.Uint("core_id", worker.CoreId),
+				zap.String("filter", hex.EncodeToString(worker.Filter)),
+			)
 			worker.Filter = nil
 			worker.Allocated = false
 			worker.PendingFilterFrame = 0
@@ -653,7 +659,7 @@ func (e *GlobalConsensusEngine) reconcileWorkerAllocations(
 			if frameNumber <= worker.PendingFilterFrame {
 				continue
 			}
-			// Worker has a filter set from a proposal, but no on-chain allocation
+			// Worker has a filter set from a proposal, but no registry allocation
 			// exists for this filter. Use shorter timeout since the proposal
 			// likely didn't land at all.
 			if frameNumber-worker.PendingFilterFrame < proposalTimeoutFrames {
@@ -661,10 +667,27 @@ func (e *GlobalConsensusEngine) reconcileWorkerAllocations(
 			}
 		}
 
+		// If we can't get prover info (self == nil) and the worker has a filter
+		// with PendingFilterFrame == 0 (not from a recent proposal), log a warning
+		// but still clear it after a grace period to avoid stuck state
 		if worker.PendingFilterFrame == 0 && self == nil {
-			continue
+			e.logger.Warn(
+				"worker has orphaned filter with no prover info available",
+				zap.Uint("core_id", worker.CoreId),
+				zap.String("filter", hex.EncodeToString(worker.Filter)),
+				zap.Bool("allocated", worker.Allocated),
+			)
+			// Still clear it - if we can't verify the allocation, assume it's stale
 		}
 
+		e.logger.Info(
+			"clearing stale worker filter",
+			zap.Uint("core_id", worker.CoreId),
+			zap.String("filter", hex.EncodeToString(worker.Filter)),
+			zap.Bool("was_allocated", worker.Allocated),
+			zap.Uint64("pending_frame", worker.PendingFilterFrame),
+			zap.Bool("self_nil", self == nil),
+		)
 		worker.Filter = nil
 		worker.Allocated = false
 		worker.PendingFilterFrame = 0
diff --git a/node/consensus/global/event_distributor_test.go b/node/consensus/global/event_distributor_test.go
index 143e59a..34329d0 100644
--- a/node/consensus/global/event_distributor_test.go
+++ b/node/consensus/global/event_distributor_test.go
@@ -347,7 +347,7 @@ func TestReconcileWorkerAllocations_UnconfirmedProposalClearsAfterTimeout(t *tes
 		workerManager: wm,
 	}
 
-	// Prover has no allocations at all - the proposal never landed on-chain
+	// Prover has no allocations at all - the proposal never landed in registry
 	self := &typesconsensus.ProverInfo{
 		Address:     []byte("prover-address"),
 		Allocations: []typesconsensus.ProverAllocationInfo{},