diff --git a/.gitea/workflows/ci-cd.yaml b/.gitea/workflows/ci-cd.yaml
index b5af3d7..16420ea 100644
--- a/.gitea/workflows/ci-cd.yaml
+++ b/.gitea/workflows/ci-cd.yaml
@@ -297,7 +297,14 @@ jobs:
           # Check for version bump on main branch
           if [ "${{ github.ref }}" = "refs/heads/main" ]; then
             echo "🔖 Checking for version bump..."
-            ./scripts/ci-version-bump.sh "${{ github.event.head_commit.message }}" --no-push
+            # ${{ github.event.head_commit.message }} is empty on workflow_dispatch (manual trigger).
+            # Fall back to the latest commit message from `git log` so the script always has input.
+            COMMIT_MSG="${{ github.event.head_commit.message }}"
+            if [ -z "$COMMIT_MSG" ]; then
+              COMMIT_MSG=$(git log -1 --pretty=%B)
+              echo "  (using git log -1 because head_commit.message is empty - probably workflow_dispatch)"
+            fi
+            ./scripts/ci-version-bump.sh "$COMMIT_MSG" --no-push
           fi
           
           # Single push for all commits (this is the ONLY push in the entire workflow)