diff --git a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.Api/appsettings.Development.json b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.Api/appsettings.Development.json
index 956a0bf33d..8beb2f6a65 100644
--- a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.Api/appsettings.Development.json
+++ b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.Api/appsettings.Development.json
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@
         "WorkItemQueueName": "pcs-workitems",
         "QueuePollTimeout": "00:00:05",
         "MaxWorkItemRetries": 3,
-        "QueueMessageInvisibilityTime": "00:05:00"
+        "QueueMessageInvisibilityTime": "00:15:00"
     },
     "Maestro": {
         "Uri": "http://localhost:8088/",
diff --git a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.Api/appsettings.json b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.Api/appsettings.json
index c0803ea3ac..2d14aa38fd 100644
--- a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.Api/appsettings.json
+++ b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.Api/appsettings.json
@@ -13,10 +13,11 @@
     },
     "AllowedHosts": "*",
     "WorkItemQueueName": "pcs-workitems",
+    "WorkItemConsumerCount": 5,
     "WorkItemConsumerOptions": {
         "QueuePollTimeout": "00:01:00",
         "MaxWorkItemRetries": 3,
-        "QueueMessageInvisibilityTime": "00:01:00"
+        "QueueMessageInvisibilityTime": "00:15:00"
     },
     "EntraAuthentication": {
         "Instance": "https://login.microsoftonline.com/",
diff --git a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemConfiguration.cs b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemConfiguration.cs
index 8cb6c0dc5c..e71f2b0285 100644
--- a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemConfiguration.cs
+++ b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemConfiguration.cs
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ namespace ProductConstructionService.WorkItems;
 public static class WorkItemConfiguration
 {
     public const string WorkItemQueueNameConfigurationKey = "WorkItemQueueName";
+    public const string WorkItemConsumerCountConfigurationKey = "WorkItemConsumerCount";
     public const string ReplicaNameKey = "CONTAINER_APP_REPLICA_NAME";
     public const int PollingRateSeconds = 10;
 
@@ -40,7 +41,19 @@ public static void AddWorkItemQueues(this IHostApplicationBuilder builder, Defau
             builder.Configuration.GetRequiredValue(WorkItemQueueNameConfigurationKey);
         builder.Services.Configure<WorkItemConsumerOptions>(
             builder.Configuration.GetSection(WorkItemConsumerOptions.ConfigurationKey));
-        builder.Services.AddHostedService<WorkItemConsumer>();
+
+        var consumerCount = int.Parse(
+            builder.Configuration.GetRequiredValue(WorkItemConsumerCountConfigurationKey));
+
+        for (int i = 0; i < consumerCount; i++)
+        {
+            var consumerId = $"WorkItemConsumer_{i}";
+
+            // https://github.com/dotnet/runtime/issues/38751
+            builder.Services.AddSingleton<IHostedService, WorkItemConsumer>(
+                p => ActivatorUtilities.CreateInstance<WorkItemConsumer>(p, consumerId));
+        }
+
         builder.Services.AddTransient<IReminderManagerFactory, ReminderManagerFactory>();
     }
 
diff --git a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemConsumer.cs b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemConsumer.cs
index 904c85c239..655afc25f2 100644
--- a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemConsumer.cs
+++ b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemConsumer.cs
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@
 namespace ProductConstructionService.WorkItems;
 
 internal class WorkItemConsumer(
+        string consumerId,
         ILogger<WorkItemConsumer> logger,
         IOptions<WorkItemConsumerOptions> options,
         WorkItemScopeManager scopeManager,
@@ -19,6 +20,7 @@ internal class WorkItemConsumer(
         IMetricRecorder metricRecorder)
     : BackgroundService
 {
+    private readonly string _consumerId = consumerId;
     private readonly ILogger<WorkItemConsumer> _logger = logger;
     private readonly IOptions<WorkItemConsumerOptions> _options = options;
     private readonly WorkItemScopeManager _scopeManager = scopeManager;
@@ -31,7 +33,8 @@ protected override async Task ExecuteAsync(CancellationToken cancellationToken)
         await Task.Yield();
 
         QueueClient queueClient = queueServiceClient.GetQueueClient(_options.Value.WorkItemQueueName);
-        _logger.LogInformation("Starting to process PCS queue {queueName}", _options.Value.WorkItemQueueName);
+        _logger.LogInformation("Consumer {consumerId} starting to process PCS queue {queueName}", _consumerId, _options.Value.WorkItemQueueName);
+
         while (!cancellationToken.IsCancellationRequested)
         {
             await using (WorkItemScope workItemScope = await _scopeManager.BeginWorkItemScopeWhenReadyAsync())
diff --git a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemProcessorState.cs b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemProcessorState.cs
index 4840f5c6ec..42188ef738 100644
--- a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemProcessorState.cs
+++ b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemProcessorState.cs
@@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ public async Task ReturnWhenWorkingAsync(int pollingRateSeconds)
         do
         {
             status = await _cache.GetAsync();
-        } while (_autoResetEvent.WaitIfTrue(() => status == Stopped, pollingRateSeconds));
+        } while (_autoResetEvent.WaitIfTrue(() => status != Working, pollingRateSeconds));
     }
 
     public async Task SetStoppedIfStoppingAsync()
diff --git a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemScopeManager.cs b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemScopeManager.cs
index cdffdcb9d5..15632d52ce 100644
--- a/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemScopeManager.cs
+++ b/src/ProductConstructionService/ProductConstructionService.WorkItems/WorkItemScopeManager.cs
@@ -13,6 +13,8 @@ public class WorkItemScopeManager
     private readonly WorkItemProcessorState _state;
     private readonly int _pollingRateSeconds;
 
+    private int _activeWorkItems = 0;
+
     public WorkItemScopeManager(
         IServiceProvider serviceProvider,
         WorkItemProcessorState state,
@@ -32,6 +34,8 @@ public async Task<WorkItemScope> BeginWorkItemScopeWhenReadyAsync()
         await _state.ReturnWhenWorkingAsync(_pollingRateSeconds);
 
         var scope = _serviceProvider.CreateScope();
+        Interlocked.Increment(ref _activeWorkItems);
+
         return new WorkItemScope(
             scope.ServiceProvider.GetRequiredService<IOptions<WorkItemProcessorRegistrations>>(),
             WorkItemFinishedAsync,
@@ -41,7 +45,10 @@ public async Task<WorkItemScope> BeginWorkItemScopeWhenReadyAsync()
 
     private async Task WorkItemFinishedAsync()
     {
-        await _state.SetStoppedIfStoppingAsync();
+        if (Interlocked.Decrement(ref _activeWorkItems) == 0)
+        {
+            await _state.SetStoppedIfStoppingAsync();
+        }
     }
 
     public async Task InitializationFinished()
diff --git a/test/ProductConstructionService.WorkItem.Tests/WorkItemsProcessorScopeManagerTests.cs b/test/ProductConstructionService.WorkItem.Tests/WorkItemsProcessorScopeManagerTests.cs
index 858aaf8e60..a9d97c53cd 100644
--- a/test/ProductConstructionService.WorkItem.Tests/WorkItemsProcessorScopeManagerTests.cs
+++ b/test/ProductConstructionService.WorkItem.Tests/WorkItemsProcessorScopeManagerTests.cs
@@ -55,9 +55,9 @@ public async Task WorkItemsProcessorStatusNormalFlow()
 
         TaskCompletionSource workItemCompletion1 = new();
         TaskCompletionSource workItemCompletion2 = new();
-        Thread t = new(() =>
+        Thread t = new(async () =>
         {
-            using (_scopeManager.BeginWorkItemScopeWhenReadyAsync()) { }
+            await using (await _scopeManager.BeginWorkItemScopeWhenReadyAsync()) { }
             workItemCompletion1.SetResult();
         });
         t.Start();