Feature Request: Support job-level reusable workflows with relative paths (`uses: ./.github/workflows/*.yml`)

[ravensorb]

Act version

0.2.83

Feature description

Summary

act currently fails schema validation when a workflow job uses a local reusable workflow (relative path). GitHub Actions supports uses: ./.github/workflows/<workflow>.yml at the job level, but act errors before execution with "Unknown Property uses".

Expected Behavior

act should accept and execute workflows that use job-level reusable workflows with relative paths, matching GitHub Actions behavior:

jobs:
  test-in-docker:
    uses: ./.github/workflows/test-docker.yml
    secrets: inherit
    with:
      image_name: docker-apps-cfgmgr:test

Actual Behavior

act fails schema validation with the following error:

Error: workflow is not valid. 'release.yaml': Line: 65 Column 5: Failed to match job-factory: Line: 65 Column 5: Unknown Property uses
Line: 66 Column 5: Unknown Property secrets
Line: 67 Column 5: Unknown Property with
Line: 65 Column 5: Failed to match workflow-job: Line: 74 Column 22: Unknown Variable Access env
Line: 75 Column 21: Unknown Variable Access env
Line: 76 Column 25: Unknown Variable Access env
Actions YAML Schema Validation Error detected

Reproduction Steps

1. Create a reusable workflow file: .github/workflows/test-docker.yml

name: Test in Docker (Reusable)

on:
  workflow_call:
    inputs:
      image_name:
        description: 'Docker image name for testing'
        required: false
        type: string
        default: 'docker-apps-cfgmgr:test'
      dockerfile:
        description: 'Path to Dockerfile'
        required: false
        type: string
        default: './docker/Dockerfile'
      dockerfile_target:
        description: 'Dockerfile target to build'
        required: false
        type: string
        default: 'test'
    outputs:
      coverage_file:
        description: 'Path to coverage XML file'
        value: ${{ jobs.test.outputs.coverage_file }}
      junit_file:
        description: 'Path to JUnit XML file'
        value: ${{ jobs.test.outputs.junit_file }}

jobs:
  test:
    name: test-in-docker
    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
    outputs:
      coverage_file: ${{ steps.set-outputs.outputs.coverage_file }}
      junit_file: ${{ steps.set-outputs.outputs.junit_file }}
    steps:
      - name: Checkout repository
        uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: Build and test
        run: |
          docker build --target ${{ inputs.dockerfile_target }} -f ${{ inputs.dockerfile }} -t ${{ inputs.image_name }} .
          docker run ${{ inputs.image_name }}

      - name: Set outputs
        id: set-outputs
        run: |
          echo "coverage_file=coverage.xml" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
          echo "junit_file=junit.xml" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT

2. Create a workflow that uses the reusable workflow: .github/workflows/release.yaml

name: Release Build, Test & Publish

on:
  push:
    tags:
      - '*.*.*'
  workflow_dispatch:

jobs:
  test-in-docker:
    uses: ./.github/workflows/test-docker.yml
    secrets: inherit
    with:
      image_name: docker-apps-cfgmgr:test
      dockerfile: ./docker/Dockerfile
      dockerfile_target: test

  build-and-publish:
    needs: test-in-docker
    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
    steps:
      - name: Checkout repository
        uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Build and push
        run: echo "Building..."

3. Run act:

act --event tag --tag v1.0.0

4. Observe the schema validation error before any jobs execute.

Minimal Reproduction Example

File: .github/workflows/test-reusable.yml

name: Test Reusable Workflow

on:
  workflow_call:
    inputs:
      message:
        description: 'Message to print'
        required: false
        type: string
        default: 'Hello from reusable workflow'

jobs:
  test-job:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Print message
        run: echo "${{ inputs.message }}"

File: .github/workflows/main.yml

name: Main Workflow

on:
  workflow_dispatch:

jobs:
  call-reusable:
    uses: ./.github/workflows/test-reusable.yml
    with:
      message: "Hello from main workflow"

Command:

act workflow_dispatch

Expected: Workflow executes successfully
Actual: Schema validation error: Unknown Property uses

Context

This feature is important because:

1. Reusable workflows are a core GitHub Actions feature - They allow workflows to be modular and DRY (Don't Repeat Yourself)
2. Local testing is blocked - Developers cannot test workflows locally that use reusable workflows
3. Even targeting a single job fails - Using act -j <job-name> still validates the entire workflow and fails
4. Related but distinct from Issue Calling reusable workflow which uses a subworkflow at a relative path in the same repository fails with file not found. #1875 - Issue Calling reusable workflow which uses a subworkflow at a relative path in the same repository fails with file not found. #1875 is about nested reusable workflows (a reusable workflow calling another reusable workflow), while this is about job-level reusable workflows in the main workflow

Environment

• act version: 0.2.83
• OS: Linux (Ubuntu, kernel 6.14.0-37-generic)
• Docker version: Docker version 29.1.4, build 0e6fee6

Additional Notes

• This works correctly in GitHub Actions
• This works correctly in Gitea Actions
• The error occurs during schema validation, before any workflow execution
• The workflow structure is valid according to GitHub Actions documentation: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/using-workflows/reusing-workflows#calling-a-reusable-workflow

References

• GitHub Actions Documentation: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/using-workflows/reusing-workflows
• Related Issue Calling reusable workflow which uses a subworkflow at a relative path in the same repository fails with file not found. #1875: Calling reusable workflow which uses a subworkflow at a relative path in the same repository fails with file not found. #1875 (nested reusable workflows - different use case)