diff --git a/core/workers/job.go b/core/workers/job.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b5db4fb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/core/workers/job.go
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+package workers
+
+// JobResult represents the result of a Lua script execution
+type JobResult struct {
+	Value interface{} // Return value from Lua
+	Error error       // Error if any
+}
+
+// job represents a Lua script execution request
+type job struct {
+	Bytecode []byte                 // Compiled LuaJIT bytecode
+	Params   map[string]interface{} // Parameters to pass to the script
+	Result   chan<- JobResult       // Channel to send result back
+}
diff --git a/core/workers/pool.go b/core/workers/pool.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1c5c1fb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/core/workers/pool.go
@@ -0,0 +1,98 @@
+package workers
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"sync"
+	"sync/atomic"
+)
+
+// Pool manages a pool of Lua worker goroutines
+type Pool struct {
+	workers   uint32         // Number of workers
+	jobs      chan job       // Channel to send jobs to workers
+	wg        sync.WaitGroup // WaitGroup to track active workers
+	quit      chan struct{}  // Channel to signal shutdown
+	isRunning atomic.Bool    // Flag to track if pool is running
+}
+
+// NewPool creates a new worker pool with the specified number of workers
+func NewPool(numWorkers int) (*Pool, error) {
+	if numWorkers <= 0 {
+		return nil, ErrNoWorkers
+	}
+
+	p := &Pool{
+		workers: uint32(numWorkers),
+		jobs:    make(chan job, numWorkers), // Buffer equal to worker count
+		quit:    make(chan struct{}),
+	}
+	p.isRunning.Store(true)
+
+	// Start workers
+	p.wg.Add(numWorkers)
+	for i := 0; i < numWorkers; i++ {
+		w := &worker{
+			pool: p,
+			id:   uint32(i),
+		}
+		go w.run()
+	}
+
+	return p, nil
+}
+
+// SubmitWithContext sends a job to the worker pool with context
+func (p *Pool) SubmitWithContext(ctx context.Context, bytecode []byte, params map[string]interface{}) (interface{}, error) {
+	if !p.isRunning.Load() {
+		return nil, ErrPoolClosed
+	}
+
+	resultChan := make(chan JobResult, 1)
+	j := job{
+		Bytecode: bytecode,
+		Params:   params,
+		Result:   resultChan,
+	}
+
+	// Submit job with context
+	select {
+	case p.jobs <- j:
+		// Job submitted
+	case <-ctx.Done():
+		return nil, ctx.Err()
+	}
+
+	// Wait for result with context
+	select {
+	case result := <-resultChan:
+		return result.Value, result.Error
+	case <-ctx.Done():
+		// Note: The job will still be processed by a worker,
+		// but the result will be discarded
+		return nil, ctx.Err()
+	}
+}
+
+// Shutdown gracefully shuts down the worker pool
+func (p *Pool) Shutdown() error {
+	if !p.isRunning.Load() {
+		return ErrPoolClosed
+	}
+	p.isRunning.Store(false)
+
+	// Signal workers to quit
+	close(p.quit)
+
+	// Wait for workers to finish
+	p.wg.Wait()
+
+	// Close jobs channel
+	close(p.jobs)
+
+	return nil
+}
+
+// ActiveWorkers returns the number of active workers
+func (p *Pool) ActiveWorkers() uint32 {
+	return atomic.LoadUint32(&p.workers)
+}
diff --git a/core/workers/worker.go b/core/workers/worker.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c481cbd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/core/workers/worker.go
@@ -0,0 +1,162 @@
+package workers
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"errors"
+	"sync/atomic"
+
+	luajit "git.sharkk.net/Sky/LuaJIT-to-Go"
+)
+
+// Common errors
+var (
+	ErrPoolClosed = errors.New("worker pool is closed")
+	ErrNoWorkers  = errors.New("no workers available")
+)
+
+// worker represents a single Lua execution worker
+type worker struct {
+	pool  *Pool         // Reference to the pool
+	state *luajit.State // Lua state
+	id    uint32        // Worker ID
+}
+
+// run is the main worker function that processes jobs
+func (w *worker) run() {
+	defer w.pool.wg.Done()
+
+	// Initialize Lua state
+	w.state = luajit.New()
+	if w.state == nil {
+		// Worker failed to initialize, decrement counter
+		atomic.AddUint32(&w.pool.workers, ^uint32(0))
+		return
+	}
+	defer w.state.Close()
+
+	// Set up reset function for clearing state between requests
+	if err := w.setupResetFunction(); err != nil {
+		// Worker failed to initialize reset function, decrement counter
+		atomic.AddUint32(&w.pool.workers, ^uint32(0))
+		return
+	}
+
+	// Main worker loop
+	for {
+		select {
+		case job, ok := <-w.pool.jobs:
+			if !ok {
+				// Jobs channel closed, exit
+				return
+			}
+
+			// Execute job
+			result := w.executeJob(job)
+			job.Result <- result
+
+		case <-w.pool.quit:
+			// Quit signal received, exit
+			return
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// setupResetFunction initializes the reset function for clearing globals
+func (w *worker) setupResetFunction() error {
+	resetScript := `
+		-- Create reset function to efficiently clear globals after each request
+		function __reset_globals()
+			-- Only keep builtin globals, remove all user-defined globals
+			local preserve = {
+				["_G"] = true, ["_VERSION"] = true, ["__reset_globals"] = true,
+				["assert"] = true, ["collectgarbage"] = true, ["coroutine"] = true,
+				["debug"] = true, ["dofile"] = true, ["error"] = true,
+				["getmetatable"] = true, ["io"] = true, ["ipairs"] = true,
+				["load"] = true, ["loadfile"] = true, ["loadstring"] = true, 
+				["math"] = true, ["next"] = true, ["os"] = true,
+				["package"] = true, ["pairs"] = true, ["pcall"] = true,
+				["print"] = true, ["rawequal"] = true, ["rawget"] = true,
+				["rawset"] = true, ["require"] = true, ["select"] = true,
+				["setmetatable"] = true, ["string"] = true, ["table"] = true,
+				["tonumber"] = true, ["tostring"] = true, ["type"] = true,
+				["unpack"] = true, ["xpcall"] = true
+			}
+			
+			-- Clear all non-standard globals
+			for name in pairs(_G) do
+				if not preserve[name] then
+					_G[name] = nil
+				end
+			end
+			
+			-- Run garbage collection to release memory
+			collectgarbage('collect')
+		end
+	`
+
+	return w.state.DoString(resetScript)
+}
+
+// resetState prepares the Lua state for a new job
+func (w *worker) resetState() {
+	w.state.DoString("__reset_globals()")
+}
+
+// setParams sets job parameters as a global 'params' table
+func (w *worker) setParams(params map[string]interface{}) error {
+	// Create new table for params
+	w.state.NewTable()
+
+	// Add each parameter to the table
+	for key, value := range params {
+		// Push key
+		w.state.PushString(key)
+
+		// Push value
+		if err := w.state.PushValue(value); err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+
+		// Set table[key] = value
+		w.state.SetTable(-3)
+	}
+
+	// Set the table as global 'params'
+	w.state.SetGlobal("params")
+
+	return nil
+}
+
+// executeJob executes a Lua job in the worker's state
+func (w *worker) executeJob(j job) JobResult {
+	// Reset state before execution
+	w.resetState()
+
+	// Set parameters
+	if j.Params != nil {
+		if err := w.setParams(j.Params); err != nil {
+			return JobResult{nil, err}
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Load bytecode
+	if err := w.state.LoadBytecode(j.Bytecode, "script"); err != nil {
+		return JobResult{nil, err}
+	}
+
+	// Execute script with one result
+	if err := w.state.RunBytecodeWithResults(1); err != nil {
+		return JobResult{nil, err}
+	}
+
+	// Get result
+	value, err := w.state.ToValue(-1)
+	w.state.Pop(1) // Pop result
+
+	return JobResult{value, err}
+}
+
+// Submit sends a job to the worker pool
+func (p *Pool) Submit(bytecode []byte, params map[string]interface{}) (interface{}, error) {
+	return p.SubmitWithContext(context.Background(), bytecode, params)
+}
diff --git a/core/workers/workers_test.go b/core/workers/workers_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..63517f8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/core/workers/workers_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,365 @@
+package workers
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	luajit "git.sharkk.net/Sky/LuaJIT-to-Go"
+)
+
+// This helper function creates real LuaJIT bytecode for our tests. Instead of using
+// mocks, we compile actual Lua code into bytecode just like we would in production.
+func createTestBytecode(t *testing.T, code string) []byte {
+	state := luajit.New()
+	if state == nil {
+		t.Fatal("Failed to create Lua state")
+	}
+	defer state.Close()
+
+	bytecode, err := state.CompileBytecode(code, "test")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to compile test bytecode: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	return bytecode
+}
+
+// This test makes sure we can create a worker pool with a valid number of workers,
+// and that we properly reject attempts to create a pool with zero or negative workers.
+func TestNewPool(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name      string
+		workers   int
+		expectErr bool
+	}{
+		{"valid workers", 4, false},
+		{"zero workers", 0, true},
+		{"negative workers", -1, true},
+	}
+
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			pool, err := NewPool(tt.workers)
+
+			if tt.expectErr {
+				if err == nil {
+					t.Errorf("Expected error for %d workers, got nil", tt.workers)
+				}
+			} else {
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Errorf("Unexpected error: %v", err)
+				}
+				if pool == nil {
+					t.Errorf("Expected non-nil pool")
+				} else {
+					pool.Shutdown()
+				}
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+// Here we're testing the basic job submission flow. We run a simple Lua script
+// that returns the number 42 and make sure we get that same value back from the worker pool.
+func TestPoolSubmit(t *testing.T) {
+	pool, err := NewPool(2)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to create pool: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer pool.Shutdown()
+
+	bytecode := createTestBytecode(t, "return 42")
+
+	result, err := pool.Submit(bytecode, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to submit job: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	num, ok := result.(float64)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("Expected float64 result, got %T", result)
+	}
+
+	if num != 42 {
+		t.Errorf("Expected 42, got %f", num)
+	}
+}
+
+// This test checks how our worker pool handles timeouts. We run a script that takes
+// some time to complete and verify two scenarios: one where the timeout is long enough
+// for successful completion, and another where we expect the operation to be canceled
+// due to a short timeout.
+func TestPoolSubmitWithContext(t *testing.T) {
+	pool, err := NewPool(2)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to create pool: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer pool.Shutdown()
+
+	// Create bytecode that sleeps
+	bytecode := createTestBytecode(t, `
+		-- Sleep for 500ms
+		local start = os.time()
+		while os.difftime(os.time(), start) < 0.5 do end
+		return "done"
+	`)
+
+	// Test with timeout that should succeed
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 1*time.Second)
+	defer cancel()
+
+	result, err := pool.SubmitWithContext(ctx, bytecode, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Unexpected error with sufficient timeout: %v", err)
+	}
+	if result != "done" {
+		t.Errorf("Expected 'done', got %v", result)
+	}
+
+	// Test with timeout that should fail
+	ctx, cancel = context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 50*time.Millisecond)
+	defer cancel()
+
+	_, err = pool.SubmitWithContext(ctx, bytecode, nil)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Errorf("Expected timeout error, got nil")
+	}
+}
+
+// We need to make sure we can pass different types of parameters from Go to Lua and
+// get them back properly. This test sends numbers, strings, booleans, and arrays to
+// a Lua script and verifies they're all handled correctly in both directions.
+func TestJobParameters(t *testing.T) {
+	pool, err := NewPool(2)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to create pool: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer pool.Shutdown()
+
+	bytecode := createTestBytecode(t, `
+		return {
+			num = params.number,
+			str = params.text,
+			flag = params.enabled,
+			list = {params.table[1], params.table[2], params.table[3]},
+		}
+	`)
+
+	params := map[string]any{
+		"number":  42.5,
+		"text":    "hello",
+		"enabled": true,
+		"table":   []float64{10, 20, 30},
+	}
+
+	result, err := pool.Submit(bytecode, params)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to submit job: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// Result should be a map
+	resultMap, ok := result.(map[string]any)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("Expected map result, got %T", result)
+	}
+
+	// Check values
+	if resultMap["num"] != 42.5 {
+		t.Errorf("Expected num=42.5, got %v", resultMap["num"])
+	}
+	if resultMap["str"] != "hello" {
+		t.Errorf("Expected str=hello, got %v", resultMap["str"])
+	}
+	if resultMap["flag"] != true {
+		t.Errorf("Expected flag=true, got %v", resultMap["flag"])
+	}
+
+	arr, ok := resultMap["list"].([]float64)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("Expected []float64, got %T", resultMap["list"])
+	}
+
+	expected := []float64{10, 20, 30}
+	for i, v := range expected {
+		if arr[i] != v {
+			t.Errorf("Expected list[%d]=%f, got %f", i, v, arr[i])
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// A key requirement for our worker pool is that we don't leak state between executions.
+// This test confirms that by setting a global variable in one job and then checking
+// that it's been cleared before the next job runs on the same worker.
+func TestStateReset(t *testing.T) {
+	pool, err := NewPool(1) // Use 1 worker to ensure same state is reused
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to create pool: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer pool.Shutdown()
+
+	// First job sets a global
+	bytecode1 := createTestBytecode(t, `
+		global_var = "should be cleared"
+		return true
+	`)
+
+	// Second job checks if global exists
+	bytecode2 := createTestBytecode(t, `
+		return global_var ~= nil
+	`)
+
+	// Run first job
+	_, err = pool.Submit(bytecode1, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to submit first job: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// Run second job
+	result, err := pool.Submit(bytecode2, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to submit second job: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// Global should be cleared
+	if result.(bool) {
+		t.Errorf("Expected global_var to be cleared, but it still exists")
+	}
+}
+
+// Let's make sure our pool shuts down cleanly. This test confirms that jobs work
+// before shutdown, that we get the right error when trying to submit after shutdown,
+// and that we properly handle attempts to shut down an already closed pool.
+func TestPoolShutdown(t *testing.T) {
+	pool, err := NewPool(2)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to create pool: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// Submit a job to verify pool works
+	bytecode := createTestBytecode(t, "return 42")
+	_, err = pool.Submit(bytecode, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to submit job: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// Shutdown
+	if err := pool.Shutdown(); err != nil {
+		t.Errorf("Shutdown failed: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// Submit after shutdown should fail
+	_, err = pool.Submit(bytecode, nil)
+	if err != ErrPoolClosed {
+		t.Errorf("Expected ErrPoolClosed, got %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// Second shutdown should return error
+	if err := pool.Shutdown(); err != ErrPoolClosed {
+		t.Errorf("Expected ErrPoolClosed on second shutdown, got %v", err)
+	}
+}
+
+// A robust worker pool needs to handle errors gracefully. This test checks various
+// error scenarios: invalid bytecode, Lua runtime errors, nil parameters (which
+// should work fine), and unsupported parameter types (which should properly error out).
+func TestErrorHandling(t *testing.T) {
+	pool, err := NewPool(2)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to create pool: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer pool.Shutdown()
+
+	// Test invalid bytecode
+	_, err = pool.Submit([]byte("not valid bytecode"), nil)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Errorf("Expected error for invalid bytecode, got nil")
+	}
+
+	// Test Lua runtime error
+	bytecode := createTestBytecode(t, `
+		error("intentional error")
+		return true
+	`)
+
+	_, err = pool.Submit(bytecode, nil)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Errorf("Expected error from Lua error() call, got nil")
+	}
+
+	// Test invalid parameter
+	bytecode = createTestBytecode(t, "return param")
+
+	// This should work with nil value
+	_, err = pool.Submit(bytecode, map[string]any{
+		"param": nil,
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Errorf("Unexpected error with nil param: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// Complex type that can't be converted
+	complex := map[string]any{
+		"param": complex128(1 + 2i), // Unsupported type
+	}
+
+	_, err = pool.Submit(bytecode, complex)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Errorf("Expected error for unsupported parameter type, got nil")
+	}
+}
+
+// The whole point of a worker pool is concurrent processing, so we need to verify
+// it works under load. This test submits multiple jobs simultaneously and makes sure
+// they all complete correctly with their own unique results.
+func TestConcurrentExecution(t *testing.T) {
+	const workers = 4
+	const jobs = 20
+
+	pool, err := NewPool(workers)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to create pool: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer pool.Shutdown()
+
+	// Create bytecode that returns its input
+	bytecode := createTestBytecode(t, "return params.n")
+
+	// Run multiple jobs concurrently
+	results := make(chan int, jobs)
+	for i := 0; i < jobs; i++ {
+		i := i // Capture loop variable
+		go func() {
+			params := map[string]any{"n": float64(i)}
+			result, err := pool.Submit(bytecode, params)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Errorf("Job %d failed: %v", i, err)
+				results <- -1
+				return
+			}
+
+			num, ok := result.(float64)
+			if !ok {
+				t.Errorf("Job %d: expected float64, got %T", i, result)
+				results <- -1
+				return
+			}
+
+			results <- int(num)
+		}()
+	}
+
+	// Collect results
+	counts := make(map[int]bool)
+	for i := 0; i < jobs; i++ {
+		result := <-results
+		if result != -1 {
+			counts[result] = true
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Verify all jobs were processed
+	if len(counts) != jobs {
+		t.Errorf("Expected %d unique results, got %d", jobs, len(counts))
+	}
+}