diff --git a/server/src/agents/pool/pipeline/merge/tests.rs b/server/src/agents/pool/pipeline/merge/tests.rs
index e20f1b57..74a1249a 100644
--- a/server/src/agents/pool/pipeline/merge/tests.rs
+++ b/server/src/agents/pool/pipeline/merge/tests.rs
@@ -1,11 +1,38 @@
 //! Tests for the merge pipeline module.
 
+// `serial_test_lock` returns a `std::sync::MutexGuard<'static, ()>` that
+// each test holds for its full body — including across `.await` points.
+// Clippy normally warns about that because async-yielding while holding a
+// sync mutex can deadlock arbitrary tasks; here it's exactly the goal:
+// only one test in this module holds the guard at a time, the rest block
+// on `lock()`, and the merge gate's flaky interleaving is eliminated.
+#![allow(clippy::await_holding_lock)]
+
 use super::super::super::AgentPool;
 use super::time::{encode_server_start_time, server_start_time};
 use crate::agents::merge::{MergeJob, MergeJobStatus};
 use std::process::Command;
 use std::sync::Arc;
 
+/// Acquire a process-wide serial lock for the merge-pipeline tests.
+///
+/// These tests share a process-wide `server_start_time()` (a `OnceLock`
+/// captured the first time anything in the merge subsystem calls it) and
+/// touch the global merge-job CRDT log. Cargo runs them in parallel by
+/// default, and the merge gate's Docker scheduler has caught at least one
+/// interleaving where one test's `delete_merge_job` lands while another is
+/// asserting the entry is still there.
+///
+/// Holding this mutex for each test serialises only the merge-pipeline
+/// tests against each other — the rest of the suite stays parallel. The
+/// guard is poison-tolerant so a panicking test doesn't lock out everything
+/// that follows.
+fn serial_test_lock() -> std::sync::MutexGuard<'static, ()> {
+    use std::sync::Mutex;
+    static LOCK: Mutex<()> = Mutex::new(());
+    LOCK.lock().unwrap_or_else(|p| p.into_inner())
+}
+
 fn init_git_repo(repo: &std::path::Path) {
     Command::new("git")
         .args(["init"])
@@ -40,6 +67,7 @@ fn init_git_repo(repo: &std::path::Path) {
 /// call succeeds.
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn stale_running_merge_job_is_cleared_and_retry_succeeds() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use tempfile::tempdir;
 
     crate::crdt_state::init_for_test();
@@ -94,6 +122,7 @@ async fn stale_running_merge_job_is_cleared_and_retry_succeeds() {
 /// merge attempt being triggered.
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn reap_stale_merge_jobs_removes_old_running_entry_without_merge() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     crate::crdt_state::init_for_test();
 
     let pool = Arc::new(AgentPool::new_test(3001));
@@ -137,6 +166,7 @@ async fn reap_stale_merge_jobs_removes_old_running_entry_without_merge() {
 #[cfg(unix)]
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn stale_merge_job_with_dead_pid_is_swept_on_new_merge_attempt() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use tempfile::tempdir;
 
     crate::crdt_state::init_for_test();
@@ -195,6 +225,7 @@ async fn run_merge_to_completion(
 
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn merge_agent_work_returns_error_when_branch_not_found() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use tempfile::tempdir;
 
     crate::crdt_state::init_for_test();
@@ -219,6 +250,7 @@ async fn merge_agent_work_returns_error_when_branch_not_found() {
 
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn merge_agent_work_succeeds_on_clean_branch() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use std::fs;
     use tempfile::tempdir;
 
@@ -303,6 +335,7 @@ async fn merge_agent_work_succeeds_on_clean_branch() {
 #[cfg(unix)]
 #[test]
 fn quality_gates_run_before_fast_forward_to_master() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use std::fs;
     use std::os::unix::fs::PermissionsExt;
     use tempfile::tempdir;
@@ -396,6 +429,7 @@ fn quality_gates_run_before_fast_forward_to_master() {
 
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn merge_agent_work_conflict_does_not_break_master() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use std::fs;
     use tempfile::tempdir;
 
@@ -513,6 +547,7 @@ async fn merge_agent_work_conflict_does_not_break_master() {
 /// error and the story must remain in `4_merge` (not advance to `5_done`).
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn merge_agent_work_zero_commits_ahead_stays_in_merge_stage() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use std::fs;
     use tempfile::tempdir;
 
@@ -596,6 +631,7 @@ async fn merge_agent_work_zero_commits_ahead_stays_in_merge_stage() {
 /// The merge_failure field must NOT be written.
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn server_side_merge_happy_path_advances_to_done() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use std::fs;
     use tempfile::tempdir;
 
@@ -707,6 +743,7 @@ async fn server_side_merge_happy_path_advances_to_done() {
 /// must remain in `4_merge/`.
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn server_side_merge_conflict_sets_merge_failure() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use std::fs;
     use tempfile::tempdir;
 
@@ -826,6 +863,7 @@ async fn server_side_merge_conflict_sets_merge_failure() {
 #[cfg(unix)]
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn server_side_merge_gate_failure_sets_merge_failure() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use std::fs;
     use std::os::unix::fs::PermissionsExt;
     use tempfile::tempdir;
@@ -944,6 +982,7 @@ async fn server_side_merge_gate_failure_sets_merge_failure() {
 /// ahead of master must continue to merge successfully (happy path).
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn merge_agent_work_one_commit_ahead_merges_successfully() {
+    let _serial = serial_test_lock();
     use std::fs;
     use tempfile::tempdir;