diff --git a/.github/workflows/fleet-status-backfill.yml b/.github/workflows/fleet-status-backfill.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..42c16bb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/fleet-status-backfill.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+# Manual: posts the fleet review-lane statuses on every open same-repo PR. Run it right after
+# the fleet/* contexts become required checks, so PRs opened before that report.
+name: Fleet status backfill
+
+on:
+  workflow_dispatch:
+
+permissions: {}
+
+jobs:
+  backfill:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 10
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+      pull-requests: read
+      issues: read
+      checks: read
+      statuses: write
+    steps:
+      - uses: askalf/checkout-with-retry@115a6407547e9711edbc2e915838d495cad9583f  # v1.1.0
+        with:
+          ref: ${{ github.event.repository.default_branch }}
+          sparse-checkout: scripts/fleet-status.mjs
+          sparse-checkout-cone-mode: false
+          persist-credentials: false
+
+      - uses: actions/setup-node@820762786026740c76f36085b0efc47a31fe5020 # v7.0.0
+        with:
+          node-version: 22
+
+      - name: Post the lane statuses on every open PR
+        env:
+          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          REPO: ${{ github.repository }}
+          TARGET_URL: ${{ github.server_url }}/${{ github.repository }}/actions/runs/${{ github.run_id }}
+        run: |
+          set -euo pipefail
+          # gh pages past 100 on its own; at the cap, fail rather than skip PRs silently.
+          all="$(gh pr list --repo "$REPO" --state open --limit 1000 --json number,isCrossRepository)"
+          if [ "$(printf '%s' "$all" | jq 'length')" -ge 1000 ]; then
+            echo "::error::1000 or more open PRs; raise the backfill limit"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          prs="$(printf '%s' "$all" | jq -r '.[] | select(.isCrossRepository | not) | .number')"
+          for pr in $prs; do
+            echo "== #$pr"
+            PR="$pr" node scripts/fleet-status.mjs
+          done
diff --git a/.github/workflows/fleet-status-self-test.yml b/.github/workflows/fleet-status-self-test.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c083caa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/fleet-status-self-test.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+# Runs the fleet-status script's tests on the PR's own code, read-only.
+# The paths are every file the tests read: the script, the tests, and the workflows, whose
+# pull_request triggers the tests check against fleet-status.yml's workflow_run list.
+# self-test is not a required check here, so a PR that touches none of them runs nothing.
+name: Fleet status self-test
+
+on:
+  pull_request:
+    types: [opened, synchronize, reopened, ready_for_review]
+    paths:
+      - .github/workflows/**
+      - scripts/fleet-status.mjs
+      - scripts/fleet-status.test.mjs
+
+permissions: {}
+
+jobs:
+  self-test:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 5
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+    steps:
+      - uses: askalf/checkout-with-retry@115a6407547e9711edbc2e915838d495cad9583f  # v1.1.0
+        with:
+          persist-credentials: false
+
+      - uses: actions/setup-node@820762786026740c76f36085b0efc47a31fe5020 # v7.0.0
+        with:
+          node-version: 22
+
+      - name: Test the lane rules
+        run: node scripts/fleet-status.test.mjs
diff --git a/.github/workflows/fleet-status.yml b/.github/workflows/fleet-status.yml
index 74ca784..b687e10 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/fleet-status.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/fleet-status.yml
@@ -1,13 +1,13 @@
 # Posts fleet review-lane commit statuses for pull requests.
 # Reads labels, comments, reviews and checks; writes statuses. Runs the default branch's script.
-# self-test runs the script's tests on the PR's own code, read-only.
-# backfill (manual) posts them on every open PR, e.g. once they become required.
+# Only the status job lives here, so every event this workflow fires on produces one check that
+# runs. The script's tests are fleet-status-self-test.yml; the manual backfill over every open
+# PR is fleet-status-backfill.yml.
 # No concurrency group: a cancelled run rolls up as a failed check on the PR. The script
 # re-reads after posting and corrects what differs, so the last run to act leaves current statuses.
 name: Fleet status
 
 on:
-  workflow_dispatch:
   pull_request:
     types: [opened, synchronize, reopened, ready_for_review, labeled, unlabeled]
   pull_request_review:
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ on:
   issue_comment:
     types: [created, edited, deleted]
   workflow_run:
-    workflows: [actionlint, build, CodeQL, 'fieldpass ci', hygiene, labels, stealth-score, 'PR triage', Redline, Fuzz]
+    workflows: ['Fleet status self-test', actionlint, build, CodeQL, 'fieldpass ci', hygiene, labels, stealth-score, 'PR triage', Redline, Fuzz]
     types: [completed]
 
 permissions: {}
@@ -60,65 +60,3 @@ jobs:
           PR: ${{ github.event.pull_request.number || github.event.issue.number || github.event.workflow_run.pull_requests[0].number }}
           TARGET_URL: ${{ github.server_url }}/${{ github.repository }}/actions/runs/${{ github.run_id }}
         run: node scripts/fleet-status.mjs
-
-  self-test:
-    if: github.event_name == 'pull_request'
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    timeout-minutes: 5
-    permissions:
-      contents: read
-    steps:
-      - uses: askalf/checkout-with-retry@115a6407547e9711edbc2e915838d495cad9583f  # v1.1.0
-        with:
-          persist-credentials: false
-
-      - uses: actions/setup-node@820762786026740c76f36085b0efc47a31fe5020 # v7.0.0
-        with:
-          node-version: 22
-
-      - name: Test the lane rules
-        run: node scripts/fleet-status.test.mjs
-
-  backfill:
-    # Manual: post the lane statuses on every open same-repo PR. Run it right after
-    # the fleet/* contexts become required checks, so PRs opened before that report.
-    if: github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch'
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    timeout-minutes: 10
-    permissions:
-      contents: read
-      pull-requests: read
-      issues: read
-      checks: read
-      statuses: write
-    steps:
-      - uses: askalf/checkout-with-retry@115a6407547e9711edbc2e915838d495cad9583f  # v1.1.0
-        with:
-          ref: ${{ github.event.repository.default_branch }}
-          sparse-checkout: scripts/fleet-status.mjs
-          sparse-checkout-cone-mode: false
-          persist-credentials: false
-
-      - uses: actions/setup-node@820762786026740c76f36085b0efc47a31fe5020 # v7.0.0
-        with:
-          node-version: 22
-
-      - name: Post the lane statuses on every open PR
-        env:
-          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
-          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
-          REPO: ${{ github.repository }}
-          TARGET_URL: ${{ github.server_url }}/${{ github.repository }}/actions/runs/${{ github.run_id }}
-        run: |
-          set -euo pipefail
-          # gh pages past 100 on its own; at the cap, fail rather than skip PRs silently.
-          all="$(gh pr list --repo "$REPO" --state open --limit 1000 --json number,isCrossRepository)"
-          if [ "$(printf '%s' "$all" | jq 'length')" -ge 1000 ]; then
-            echo "::error::1000 or more open PRs; raise the backfill limit"
-            exit 1
-          fi
-          prs="$(printf '%s' "$all" | jq -r '.[] | select(.isCrossRepository | not) | .number')"
-          for pr in $prs; do
-            echo "== #$pr"
-            PR="$pr" node scripts/fleet-status.mjs
-          done
diff --git a/scripts/fleet-status.test.mjs b/scripts/fleet-status.test.mjs
index 514d0f4..2a71e63 100644
--- a/scripts/fleet-status.test.mjs
+++ b/scripts/fleet-status.test.mjs
@@ -292,7 +292,7 @@ console.log('\n  required CI is the verification where the base branch requires
 
 {
   // backfill pages past one page of open PRs and stops loudly at its cap.
-  const wf = readFileSync(join(fileURLToPath(new URL('..', import.meta.url)), '.github', 'workflows', 'fleet-status.yml'), 'utf8');
+  const wf = readFileSync(join(fileURLToPath(new URL('..', import.meta.url)), '.github', 'workflows', 'fleet-status-backfill.yml'), 'utf8');
   const limit = Number(/gh pr list --repo "\$REPO" --state open --limit (\d+)/.exec(wf)?.[1] ?? 0);
   check('backfill reads more than one page of open PRs', limit > 100);
   check('backfill fails at its cap instead of skipping PRs', new RegExp(`-ge ${limit}\\b`).test(wf) && /::error::/.test(wf));