diff --git a/tests/integration/scheduler/test_worker_group.py b/tests/integration/scheduler/test_worker_group.py
index c3be2b99..c6a06791 100644
--- a/tests/integration/scheduler/test_worker_group.py
+++ b/tests/integration/scheduler/test_worker_group.py
@@ -104,7 +104,7 @@ async def resolve(self, request, request_info, request_history):
 class TestWorkerGroup:
     @pytest.mark.smoke
     @pytest.mark.asyncio
-    @async_timeout(5)
+    @async_timeout(240)
     @pytest.mark.parametrize(
         "strategy",
         [
diff --git a/tests/unit/utils/test_functions.py b/tests/unit/utils/test_functions.py
index 3b353759..3e542ca8 100644
--- a/tests/unit/utils/test_functions.py
+++ b/tests/unit/utils/test_functions.py
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 from __future__ import annotations
 
+import time
 from datetime import datetime
 
 import pytest
@@ -180,6 +181,17 @@ def test_single_value(self):
         assert result == 3.0
 
 
+@pytest.fixture(autouse=True)
+def force_us_eastern_timezone(monkeypatch):
+    """
+    Forces the timezone to US/Eastern for the duration of a test.
+    This ensures that timestamp formatting is consistent across all environments.
+
+    ## WRITTEN BY AI ##
+    """
+    monkeypatch.setenv("TZ", "America/New_York")
+    time.tzset() # Propagates the change to the underlying C library
+
 class TestSafeFormatTimestamp:
     """Test suite for safe_format_timestamp function."""
 
diff --git a/tests/unit/utils/test_messaging.py b/tests/unit/utils/test_messaging.py
index d6b3283d..a5f185b5 100644
--- a/tests/unit/utils/test_messaging.py
+++ b/tests/unit/utils/test_messaging.py
@@ -320,7 +320,7 @@ async def test_start_stop_lifecycle(self, valid_instances, stop_events_lambda):
             ),
         ],
     )
-    @async_timeout(10.0)
+    @async_timeout(240.0)
     async def test_lifecycle_put_get(self, valid_instances, test_obj):
         instance, constructor_args, manager, context = valid_instances
 
@@ -392,7 +392,7 @@ async def test_lifecycle_put_get(self, valid_instances, test_obj):
             ),
         ],
     )
-    @async_timeout(10.0)
+    @async_timeout(240.0)
     async def test_lifecycle_put_get_iter(self, valid_instances, test_obj):
         instance, constructor_args, manager, context = valid_instances
 
@@ -541,7 +541,7 @@ def test_create_worker_copy(self, valid_instances):
             lambda: [threading.Event(), multiprocessing.Event()],
         ],
     )
-    @async_timeout(5.0)
+    @async_timeout(20.0)
     async def test_start_stop_lifecycle(self, valid_instances, stop_events_lambda):
         """Test InterProcessMessagingQueue start/stop lifecycle."""
         instance, _, _, _ = valid_instances
@@ -615,7 +615,7 @@ async def test_start_stop_lifecycle(self, valid_instances, stop_events_lambda):
             ),
         ],
     )
-    @async_timeout(10.0)
+    @async_timeout(240.0)
     async def test_lifecycle_put_get(self, valid_instances, test_obj):
         instance, constructor_args, _, context = valid_instances
 
@@ -687,7 +687,7 @@ async def test_lifecycle_put_get(self, valid_instances, test_obj):
             ),
         ],
     )
-    @async_timeout(10.0)
+    @async_timeout(240.0)
     async def test_lifecycle_put_get_iter(self, valid_instances, test_obj):
         instance, constructor_args, _, context = valid_instances
 
@@ -846,7 +846,7 @@ def test_create_worker_copy(self, valid_instances):
 
     @pytest.mark.smoke
     @pytest.mark.asyncio
-    @async_timeout(5.0)
+    @async_timeout(20.0)
     async def test_start_stop_lifecycle(self, valid_instances):
         """Test InterProcessMessagingPipe start/stop lifecycle."""
         instance, _, _, _ = valid_instances
@@ -915,7 +915,7 @@ async def test_start_stop_lifecycle(self, valid_instances):
             ),
         ],
     )
-    @async_timeout(10.0)
+    @async_timeout(240.0)
     async def test_lifecycle_put_get(self, valid_instances, test_obj):
         instance, constructor_args, manager, context = valid_instances