diff --git a/changelog/current.md b/changelog/current.md
index 3e12dc5f1..81ef3b0bf 100644
--- a/changelog/current.md
+++ b/changelog/current.md
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ Record image-affecting changes to `manager/`, `worker/`, `copaw/`, `openclaw-bas
 
 **Bug Fixes**
 
+- **CoPaw Worker k8s storage**: CoPaw workers in self-hosted k8s deployments now fall back to static MinIO alias setup when `MC_HOST_hiclaw` is not injected, restoring startup `mc mirror` behavior while preserving cloud STS mode.
 - **CoPaw Worker heartbeat**: CoPaw worker templates now seed heartbeat at a 10-minute interval so Team Leader agents created from the worker template can run heartbeat turns without requiring an explicit Team CR heartbeat spec.
 - **Helm CRDs**: Removed unsupported `propertyNames` schema fields from Worker and Team CRDs so Kubernetes API servers accept the chart CRDs.
 - **CoPaw local runtime paths**: CoPaw direct-run defaults now honor `COPAW_INSTALL_DIR` and `COPAW_WORKING_DIR` before falling back to local home-directory paths, while container entrypoints can continue to pass explicit directories.
diff --git a/copaw/src/copaw_worker/sync.py b/copaw/src/copaw_worker/sync.py
index 93ee19e9a..ea715b2f9 100644
--- a/copaw/src/copaw_worker/sync.py
+++ b/copaw/src/copaw_worker/sync.py
@@ -279,7 +279,8 @@ def _ensure_alias(self) -> None:
 
         Cloud mode (RRSA/STS): refresh credentials before every mc batch
         via the shared shell function (lazy, no-op when token is valid).
-        Local mode: set mc alias once with static credentials.
+        Local and self-hosted k8s modes: set mc alias once with static
+        credentials, unless k8s already injected ``MC_HOST_hiclaw``.
         """
         runtime = os.environ.get("HICLAW_RUNTIME", "<unset>")
         mc_host_set = bool(os.environ.get(f"MC_HOST_{_MC_ALIAS}"))
@@ -297,8 +298,11 @@ def _ensure_alias(self) -> None:
             mc_host_set,
             controller_url,
         )
-        if self._k8s_mode:
-            logger.info("_ensure_alias: k8s mode, skipping mc alias set (mc-wrapper handles credentials)")
+        if self._k8s_mode and mc_host_set:
+            logger.info(
+                "_ensure_alias: k8s mode with MC_HOST_%s, skipping static alias set",
+                _MC_ALIAS,
+            )
             self._alias_set = True
             return
         if self._cloud_mode:
@@ -314,7 +318,7 @@ def _ensure_alias(self) -> None:
         if self._alias_set:
             logger.info("_ensure_alias: credential path=static, alias already set")
             return
-        # Local mode: static credentials, set alias once
+        # Local and self-hosted k8s modes use static credentials.
         if self.endpoint.startswith("http"):
             url = self.endpoint
         else:
diff --git a/copaw/tests/test_worker_sync.py b/copaw/tests/test_worker_sync.py
index 5f057d3ec..79abbcb48 100644
--- a/copaw/tests/test_worker_sync.py
+++ b/copaw/tests/test_worker_sync.py
@@ -7,10 +7,13 @@
 from copaw_worker.sync import FileSync
 
 
-def test_ensure_alias_skips_static_alias_in_k8s_mode(monkeypatch, tmp_path):
+def test_ensure_alias_skips_static_alias_in_k8s_mode_when_mc_host_exists(
+    monkeypatch, tmp_path
+):
     calls = []
 
     monkeypatch.setenv("HICLAW_RUNTIME", "k8s")
+    monkeypatch.setenv("MC_HOST_hiclaw", "http://token@example.com")
     monkeypatch.setattr(sync, "_mc", lambda *args, **_kwargs: calls.append(args))
 
     fs = FileSync(
@@ -28,6 +31,32 @@ def test_ensure_alias_skips_static_alias_in_k8s_mode(monkeypatch, tmp_path):
     assert calls == []
 
 
+def test_ensure_alias_falls_back_to_static_alias_in_local_k8s(
+    monkeypatch, tmp_path
+):
+    calls = []
+
+    monkeypatch.setenv("HICLAW_RUNTIME", "k8s")
+    monkeypatch.delenv("MC_HOST_hiclaw", raising=False)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(sync, "_mc", lambda *args, **_kwargs: calls.append(args))
+
+    fs = FileSync(
+        endpoint="minio:9000",
+        access_key="tt",
+        secret_key="secret",
+        bucket="hiclaw",
+        worker_name="tt",
+        local_dir=tmp_path,
+    )
+
+    fs._ensure_alias()
+
+    assert fs._alias_set is True
+    assert calls == [
+        ("alias", "set", "hiclaw", "http://minio:9000", "tt", "secret")
+    ]
+
+
 def test_filesync_fallback_uses_copaw_working_dir_parent(monkeypatch, tmp_path):
     working_dir = tmp_path / "alice" / ".copaw"
     monkeypatch.setenv("COPAW_WORKING_DIR", str(working_dir))