diff --git a/src/webviews/apps/plus/home/components/active-work.ts b/src/webviews/apps/plus/home/components/active-work.ts
index 064f49d8cac87..ce3f6a92db47b 100644
--- a/src/webviews/apps/plus/home/components/active-work.ts
+++ b/src/webviews/apps/plus/home/components/active-work.ts
@@ -232,6 +232,15 @@ export class GlActiveBranchCard extends GlBranchCardBase {
 				flex-direction: column;
 				gap: 0.8rem;
 			}
+
+			span.branch-item__missing {
+				color: var(--vscode-descriptionForeground);
+				font-style: italic;
+			}
+
+			gl-work-item {
+				--gl-card-vertical-padding: 0.4rem;
+			}
 		`,
 	];
 
@@ -243,9 +252,9 @@ export class GlActiveBranchCard extends GlBranchCardBase {
 
 	override render(): unknown {
 		return html`
-			${this.renderBranchIndicator()}${this.renderBranchItem(
+			${this.renderBranchIndicator()}${this.renderIssuesItem()}${this.renderBranchItem(
 				html`${this.renderBranchStateActions()}${this.renderBranchActions()}`,
-			)}${this.renderPrItem()}${this.renderIssuesItem()}
+			)}${this.renderPrItem()}
 		`;
 	}
 
@@ -518,16 +527,21 @@ export class GlActiveBranchCard extends GlBranchCardBase {
 		if (!issues.length) {
 			if (!this.expanded) return nothing;
 
-			return html`<gl-button
-				class="branch-item__missing"
-				appearance="secondary"
-				full
-				href=${this.createCommandLink<AssociateIssueWithBranchCommandArgs>('gitlens.associateIssueWithBranch', {
-					branch: this.branch.reference,
-					source: 'home',
-				})}
-				>Associate an Issue</gl-button
-			>`;
+			return html`<div class="branch-item__row" full>
+				<span class="branch-item__missing" full>Current work item</span>
+				<gl-tooltip hoist content="Associate an issue">
+					<a
+						href=${this.createCommandLink<AssociateIssueWithBranchCommandArgs>(
+							'gitlens.associateIssueWithBranch',
+							{
+								branch: this.branch.reference,
+								source: 'home',
+							},
+						)}
+						><span class="branch-item__icon"> <issue-icon></issue-icon> </span
+					></a>
+				</gl-tooltip>
+			</div>`;
 		}
 		return super.renderIssuesItem();
 	}
diff --git a/src/webviews/apps/plus/home/components/branch-card.ts b/src/webviews/apps/plus/home/components/branch-card.ts
index 441d2479478e4..241d53daa53a5 100644
--- a/src/webviews/apps/plus/home/components/branch-card.ts
+++ b/src/webviews/apps/plus/home/components/branch-card.ts
@@ -1152,6 +1152,8 @@ export class GlWorkUnit extends LitElement {
 
 			gl-card::part(base) {
 				margin-block-end: 0;
+				padding-top: var(--gl-card-vertical-padding, 0.8rem);
+				padding-bottom: var(--gl-card-vertical-padding, 0.8rem);
 			}
 		`,
 	];