diff --git a/features/fixtures/docker-compose.yml b/features/fixtures/docker-compose.yml
index 94a9b3b7..d7ecbc83 100644
--- a/features/fixtures/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/features/fixtures/docker-compose.yml
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ version: '3.8'
 
 services:
   laravel51:
+    init: true
     build:
       context: laravel51
       args:
diff --git a/features/fixtures/laravel51/.env b/features/fixtures/laravel51/.env
index cebc8926..cf3794c3 100644
--- a/features/fixtures/laravel51/.env
+++ b/features/fixtures/laravel51/.env
@@ -2,15 +2,11 @@ APP_ENV=local
 APP_DEBUG=true
 APP_KEY=SomeRandomString
 
-DB_CONNECTION=mysql
-DB_HOST=127.0.0.1
-DB_DATABASE=homestead
-DB_USERNAME=homestead
-DB_PASSWORD=secret
+DB_CONNECTION=sqlite
 
 CACHE_DRIVER=file
 SESSION_DRIVER=file
-QUEUE_DRIVER=sync
+QUEUE_DRIVER=database
 
 REDIS_HOST=127.0.0.1
 REDIS_PASSWORD=null
diff --git a/features/fixtures/laravel51/Dockerfile b/features/fixtures/laravel51/Dockerfile
index c0bba8aa..b5551f8c 100644
--- a/features/fixtures/laravel51/Dockerfile
+++ b/features/fixtures/laravel51/Dockerfile
@@ -16,4 +16,7 @@ COPY --from=composer:2.2 /usr/bin/composer /usr/local/bin/composer
 RUN composer install --no-dev
 RUN php artisan key:generate
 
+# create database & apply migrations
+RUN touch database/database.sqlite && php artisan migrate --no-interaction
+
 CMD php artisan serve --port=8000 --host=0.0.0.0
diff --git a/features/fixtures/laravel51/app/Http/routes.php b/features/fixtures/laravel51/app/Http/routes.php
index dfc4b2d1..f1e8cbb5 100644
--- a/features/fixtures/laravel51/app/Http/routes.php
+++ b/features/fixtures/laravel51/app/Http/routes.php
@@ -61,6 +61,14 @@
     return view('handlederror');
 });
 
+Route::get('/queue/unhandled', function () {
+    Queue::push(new \App\Jobs\UnhandledJob());
+});
+
+Route::get('/queue/handled', function () {
+    Queue::push(new \App\Jobs\HandledJob());
+});
+
 /**
  * Return some diagnostics if an OOM did not happen when it should have.
  *
diff --git a/features/fixtures/laravel51/app/Jobs/HandledJob.php b/features/fixtures/laravel51/app/Jobs/HandledJob.php
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..b706f6d7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/features/fixtures/laravel51/app/Jobs/HandledJob.php
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+<?php
+
+namespace App\Jobs;
+
+use Exception;
+use App\Jobs\Job;
+use Illuminate\Contracts\Bus\SelfHandling;
+use Illuminate\Contracts\Queue\ShouldQueue;
+use Bugsnag\BugsnagLaravel\Facades\Bugsnag;
+
+class HandledJob extends Job implements SelfHandling, ShouldQueue
+{
+    /**
+     * Execute the job.
+     *
+     * @return void
+     */
+    public function handle()
+    {
+        Bugsnag::notifyException(new Exception('Handled :)'));
+    }
+}
diff --git a/features/fixtures/laravel51/app/Jobs/UnhandledJob.php b/features/fixtures/laravel51/app/Jobs/UnhandledJob.php
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..a836a768
--- /dev/null
+++ b/features/fixtures/laravel51/app/Jobs/UnhandledJob.php
@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+<?php
+
+namespace App\Jobs;
+
+use App\Jobs\Job;
+use RuntimeException;
+use Illuminate\Contracts\Bus\SelfHandling;
+use Illuminate\Contracts\Queue\ShouldQueue;
+
+class UnhandledJob extends Job implements SelfHandling, ShouldQueue
+{
+    /**
+     * Execute the job.
+     *
+     * @return void
+     */
+    public function handle()
+    {
+        throw new RuntimeException('uh oh :o');
+    }
+}
diff --git a/features/fixtures/laravel51/database/migrations/2022_12_06_094153_create_jobs_table.php b/features/fixtures/laravel51/database/migrations/2022_12_06_094153_create_jobs_table.php
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..81b2d29f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/features/fixtures/laravel51/database/migrations/2022_12_06_094153_create_jobs_table.php
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+<?php
+
+use Illuminate\Database\Schema\Blueprint;
+use Illuminate\Database\Migrations\Migration;
+
+class CreateJobsTable extends Migration
+{
+    /**
+     * Run the migrations.
+     *
+     * @return void
+     */
+    public function up()
+    {
+        Schema::create('jobs', function (Blueprint $table) {
+            $table->bigIncrements('id');
+            $table->string('queue');
+            $table->longText('payload');
+            $table->tinyInteger('attempts')->unsigned();
+            $table->tinyInteger('reserved')->unsigned();
+            $table->unsignedInteger('reserved_at')->nullable();
+            $table->unsignedInteger('available_at');
+            $table->unsignedInteger('created_at');
+            $table->index(['queue', 'reserved', 'reserved_at']);
+        });
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Reverse the migrations.
+     *
+     * @return void
+     */
+    public function down()
+    {
+        Schema::drop('jobs');
+    }
+}
diff --git a/features/fixtures/laravel51/database/migrations/2022_12_06_094156_create_failed_jobs_table.php b/features/fixtures/laravel51/database/migrations/2022_12_06_094156_create_failed_jobs_table.php
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..3d733b6b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/features/fixtures/laravel51/database/migrations/2022_12_06_094156_create_failed_jobs_table.php
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+<?php
+
+use Illuminate\Database\Schema\Blueprint;
+use Illuminate\Database\Migrations\Migration;
+
+class CreateFailedJobsTable extends Migration
+{
+    /**
+     * Run the migrations.
+     *
+     * @return void
+     */
+    public function up()
+    {
+        Schema::create('failed_jobs', function (Blueprint $table) {
+            $table->increments('id');
+            $table->text('connection');
+            $table->text('queue');
+            $table->longText('payload');
+            $table->timestamp('failed_at')->useCurrent();
+        });
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Reverse the migrations.
+     *
+     * @return void
+     */
+    public function down()
+    {
+        Schema::drop('failed_jobs');
+    }
+}
diff --git a/features/lib/laravel.rb b/features/lib/laravel.rb
index 4f9d6301..a0eb9a91 100644
--- a/features/lib/laravel.rb
+++ b/features/lib/laravel.rb
@@ -31,6 +31,20 @@ def major_version
       Integer(/^(?:laravel|lumen)(\d)/.match(fixture)[1])
     end
 
+    def version
+      # e.g. laravel56 -> 56, lumen8 -> 8
+      raw_digits = /^(?:laravel|lumen)(\d+)/.match(fixture)[1]
+
+      # convert the raw digits to an array of: [major, minor, patch]
+      # in practice we only have 1 or 2 digits in our fixture names, so fill the
+      # rest with 0s to make sure Gem::Version doesn't get confused
+      # e.g. ['5', '6'] -> ['5', '6', '0'], ['8'] -> ['8', '0', '0']
+      version_string = raw_digits.chars
+      version_string.fill("0", version_string.length..2)
+
+      Gem::Version.new(version_string.join("."))
+    end
+
     def lumen?
       fixture.start_with?("lumen")
     end
@@ -46,6 +60,17 @@ def supports_sessions?
       true
     end
 
+    def queue_worker_command(tries:)
+      # the command to run the queue worker was 'queue:listen' but changed to
+      # 'queue:work' in Laravel 5.3 ('queue:work' exists on older Laravels, but
+      # is not quite equivalent)
+      if version < '5.3.0'
+        "php artisan queue:listen --tries=#{tries}"
+      else
+        "php artisan queue:work --tries=#{tries}"
+      end
+    end
+
     private
 
     def load_port_from_docker_compose
diff --git a/features/queues.feature b/features/queues.feature
index b09737a1..4d58bc9e 100644
--- a/features/queues.feature
+++ b/features/queues.feature
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 Feature: Queue support
 
-@not-laravel-latest @not-laravel51 @not-lumen8
+@not-laravel-latest @not-lumen8
 Scenario: Unhandled exceptions are delivered from queues
   Given I start the laravel fixture
   And I start the laravel queue worker
@@ -9,22 +9,23 @@ Scenario: Unhandled exceptions are delivered from queues
   Then the error is valid for the error reporting API version "4.0" for the "Bugsnag Laravel" notifier
   And the exception "errorClass" equals "RuntimeException"
   And the exception "message" equals "uh oh :o"
-  And the event "metaData.job.name" equals "Illuminate\Queue\CallQueuedHandler@call"
-  And the event "metaData.job.queue" equals "default"
-  And the event "metaData.job.attempts" equals 1
-  And the event "metaData.job.connection" equals "database"
-  And the event "metaData.job.resolved" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
-  And the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
-  And the event "context" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.name" equals "Illuminate\Queue\CallQueuedHandler@call"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.queue" equals "default"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.attempts" equals 1
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.connection" equals "database"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.resolved" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "context" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions == 5.1 the event "metaData.job" is null
   And the event "severity" equals "error"
   And the event "unhandled" is true
   And the event "severityReason.type" equals "unhandledExceptionMiddleware"
   And the event "severityReason.attributes.framework" equals "Laravel"
 
-@not-laravel-latest @not-laravel51 @not-lumen8
+@not-laravel-latest @not-lumen8
 Scenario: Unhandled exceptions are delivered from queued jobs with multiple attmpts
   Given I start the laravel fixture
-  And I start the laravel queue worker
+  And I start the laravel queue worker with --tries=3
   When I navigate to the route "/queue/unhandled?tries=3"
   And I wait to receive 3 errors
 
@@ -32,13 +33,14 @@ Scenario: Unhandled exceptions are delivered from queued jobs with multiple attm
   Then the error is valid for the error reporting API version "4.0" for the "Bugsnag Laravel" notifier
   And the exception "errorClass" equals "RuntimeException"
   And the exception "message" equals "uh oh :o"
-  And the event "metaData.job.name" equals "Illuminate\Queue\CallQueuedHandler@call"
-  And the event "metaData.job.queue" equals "default"
-  And the event "metaData.job.attempts" equals 1
-  And the event "metaData.job.connection" equals "database"
-  And the event "metaData.job.resolved" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
-  And the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
-  And the event "context" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.name" equals "Illuminate\Queue\CallQueuedHandler@call"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.queue" equals "default"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.attempts" equals 1
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.connection" equals "database"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.resolved" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "context" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions == 5.1 the event "metaData.job" is null
   And the event "severity" equals "error"
   And the event "unhandled" is true
   And the event "severityReason.type" equals "unhandledExceptionMiddleware"
@@ -49,13 +51,14 @@ Scenario: Unhandled exceptions are delivered from queued jobs with multiple attm
   Then the error is valid for the error reporting API version "4.0" for the "Bugsnag Laravel" notifier
   And the exception "errorClass" equals "RuntimeException"
   And the exception "message" equals "uh oh :o"
-  And the event "metaData.job.name" equals "Illuminate\Queue\CallQueuedHandler@call"
-  And the event "metaData.job.queue" equals "default"
-  And the event "metaData.job.attempts" equals 2
-  And the event "metaData.job.connection" equals "database"
-  And the event "metaData.job.resolved" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
-  And the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
-  And the event "context" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.name" equals "Illuminate\Queue\CallQueuedHandler@call"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.queue" equals "default"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.attempts" equals 2
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.connection" equals "database"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.resolved" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "context" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions == 5.1 the event "metaData.job" is null
   And the event "severity" equals "error"
   And the event "unhandled" is true
   And the event "severityReason.type" equals "unhandledExceptionMiddleware"
@@ -66,19 +69,20 @@ Scenario: Unhandled exceptions are delivered from queued jobs with multiple attm
   Then the error is valid for the error reporting API version "4.0" for the "Bugsnag Laravel" notifier
   And the exception "errorClass" equals "RuntimeException"
   And the exception "message" equals "uh oh :o"
-  And the event "metaData.job.name" equals "Illuminate\Queue\CallQueuedHandler@call"
-  And the event "metaData.job.queue" equals "default"
-  And the event "metaData.job.attempts" equals 3
-  And the event "metaData.job.connection" equals "database"
-  And the event "metaData.job.resolved" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
-  And the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
-  And the event "context" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.name" equals "Illuminate\Queue\CallQueuedHandler@call"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.queue" equals "default"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.attempts" equals 3
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.connection" equals "database"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.resolved" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "context" equals "App\Jobs\UnhandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions == 5.1 the event "metaData.job" is null
   And the event "severity" equals "error"
   And the event "unhandled" is true
   And the event "severityReason.type" equals "unhandledExceptionMiddleware"
   And the event "severityReason.attributes.framework" equals "Laravel"
 
-@not-laravel-latest @not-laravel51 @not-lumen8
+@not-laravel-latest @not-lumen8
 Scenario: Handled exceptions are delivered from queues
   Given I start the laravel fixture
   And I start the laravel queue worker
@@ -87,13 +91,14 @@ Scenario: Handled exceptions are delivered from queues
   Then the error is valid for the error reporting API version "4.0" for the "Bugsnag Laravel" notifier
   And the exception "errorClass" equals "Exception"
   And the exception "message" equals "Handled :)"
-  And the event "metaData.job.name" equals "Illuminate\Queue\CallQueuedHandler@call"
-  And the event "metaData.job.queue" equals "default"
-  And the event "metaData.job.attempts" equals 1
-  And the event "metaData.job.connection" equals "database"
-  And the event "metaData.job.resolved" equals "App\Jobs\HandledJob"
-  And the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
-  And the event "context" equals "App\Jobs\HandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.name" equals "Illuminate\Queue\CallQueuedHandler@call"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.queue" equals "default"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.attempts" equals 1
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.connection" equals "database"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "metaData.job.resolved" equals "App\Jobs\HandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
+  And on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "context" equals "App\Jobs\HandledJob"
+  And on Laravel versions == 5.1 the event "metaData.job" is null
   And the event "severity" equals "warning"
   And the event "unhandled" is false
   And the event "severityReason.type" equals "handledException"
diff --git a/features/steps/laravel_steps.rb b/features/steps/laravel_steps.rb
index 7777928e..1f44ad7e 100644
--- a/features/steps/laravel_steps.rb
+++ b/features/steps/laravel_steps.rb
@@ -29,7 +29,11 @@ def exec(service, command, detach: false)
 end
 
 When("I start the laravel queue worker") do
-  Maze::Docker.exec(Laravel.fixture, "php artisan queue:work", detach: true)
+  step("I start the laravel queue worker with --tries=1")
+end
+
+When("I start the laravel queue worker with --tries={int}") do |tries|
+  Maze::Docker.exec(Laravel.fixture, Laravel.queue_worker_command(tries: tries), detach: true)
 end
 
 When("I navigate to the route {string}") do |route|
@@ -99,3 +103,20 @@ def exec(service, command, detach: false)
 
   step("the session payload field '#{path}' matches the regex '^((\\d+\\.){2}\\d+|\\d\\.x-dev)$'")
 end
+
+# conditionally run a step if the laravel version matches a specified version
+#
+# e.g. this will only check app.type on Laravel 5.2 and above:
+#      on Laravel versions > 5.1 the event "app.type" equals "Queue"
+Then(/^on Laravel versions (>=?|<=?|==) ([0-9.]+) (.*)$/) do |operator, version, step_to_run|
+  should_run_step = Laravel.version.send(operator, version)
+
+  # make sure this step is debuggable!
+  $logger.debug("Laravel v#{Laravel.version} #{operator} #{version}? #{should_run_step}")
+
+  if should_run_step
+    step(step_to_run)
+  else
+    $logger.info("Skipping step on Laravel v#{Laravel.version}: #{step_to_run}")
+  end
+end