diff --git a/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/AssignmentsHandler.java b/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/AssignmentsHandler.java
index 8afd06e..4a74f44 100644
--- a/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/AssignmentsHandler.java
+++ b/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/AssignmentsHandler.java
@@ -179,7 +179,8 @@ public class AssignmentsHandler {
             publicationsRetrieverPlugin.processAssignments(assignmentRequestCounter, assignmentsForPlugins.values());
         } catch (Exception e) {
             logger.error("Exception when processing the assignments_" + assignmentRequestCounter, e);
-        }   // In this case, we will either have an empty WorkerReport or a half-filled one. Either way, we want to report back to the Controller.
+            return;
+        }   // In this case, no assignments were processed.
 
         PublicationsRetriever.calculateAndPrintElapsedTime(startTime, Instant.now(), "The processing of assignments_" + assignmentRequestCounter + " finished after: ");
 
@@ -214,7 +215,7 @@ public class AssignmentsHandler {
         }
 
         if ( GeneralController.shouldShutdownWorker
-                || (AssignmentsHandler.numHandledAssignmentsBatches == this.maxAssignmentsBatchesToHandleBeforeShutdown) )
+                || (numHandledAssignmentsBatches == this.maxAssignmentsBatchesToHandleBeforeShutdown) )
         {
             logger.info("The worker will shutdown, after the full-texts are delivered to the Controller, as " + (GeneralController.shouldShutdownWorker
                     ? "it received a \"shutdownWorker\" request!"
diff --git a/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/ScheduledTasks.java b/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/ScheduledTasks.java
index bef39fa..213e241 100644
--- a/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/ScheduledTasks.java
+++ b/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/ScheduledTasks.java
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ public class ScheduledTasks {
 
     @Scheduled(fixedDelay = 1)  // Request the next batch immediately after the last one finishes.
     public void handleNewAssignments() {
-        if ( AssignmentsHandler.shouldNotRequestMore ) {
+        if ( GeneralController.shouldShutdownWorker || AssignmentsHandler.shouldNotRequestMore ) {
             // Here we will be right after the Worker has posted its last report. It is guaranteed that the Controller will not have processed it and have not requested the full-text files.
             // We do not want to shut down the controller.
             return;
@@ -172,7 +172,7 @@ public class ScheduledTasks {
 
             long currentTime = System.currentTimeMillis();
 
-            // Loop through the array and print only the directories
+            // Loop through the array, check the "lastModified" time and if it is too old delete the full-texts subDir and the related workerReport.
             for ( File subDir : fulltextSubDirs ) {
                 long lastModified = subDir.lastModified();
 
diff --git a/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/plugins/PublicationsRetrieverPlugin.java b/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/plugins/PublicationsRetrieverPlugin.java
index e7b2986..5ca3886 100644
--- a/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/plugins/PublicationsRetrieverPlugin.java
+++ b/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/components/plugins/PublicationsRetrieverPlugin.java
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import eu.openaire.publications_retriever.util.url.UrlUtils;
 import eu.openaire.urls_worker.UrlsWorkerApplication;
 import eu.openaire.urls_worker.components.AssignmentsHandler;
 import eu.openaire.urls_worker.components.ConnWithController;
+import eu.openaire.urls_worker.controllers.GeneralController;
 import eu.openaire.urls_worker.models.Assignment;
 import eu.openaire.urls_worker.models.Error;
 import eu.openaire.urls_worker.models.Payload;
@@ -153,10 +154,10 @@ public class PublicationsRetrieverPlugin {
 
         int numFailedTasks = LoaderAndChecker.invokeAllTasksAndWait(callableTasks);
         if ( numFailedTasks == -1 ) {   // The unknown exception is logged inside the above method.
-            System.err.println("Invoking and/or executing the callableTasks failed with the exception (which is written in the log files)!");
-            connWithController.postShutdownReportToController(workerId);
-            UrlsWorkerApplication.gentleAppShutdown();
-            return; // Not  relly needed, but have it for code-readability.
+            GeneralController.shouldShutdownWorker = true;
+            AssignmentsHandler.shouldNotRequestMore = true;
+            PublicationsRetriever.executor.shutdownNow();   // Close the thread-pool immediately. It will not be used again while the Worker is still running.
+            throw new RuntimeException("Invoking and/or executing the callableTasks failed with the exception (which is written in the log files)!");
         }
 
         if ( numFailedTasks > 0 )
diff --git a/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/controllers/GeneralController.java b/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/controllers/GeneralController.java
index 2a043e9..708f978 100644
--- a/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/controllers/GeneralController.java
+++ b/src/main/java/eu/openaire/urls_worker/controllers/GeneralController.java
@@ -104,7 +104,7 @@ public class GeneralController {
         String directoryPath = PublicationsRetrieverPlugin.assignmentsBasePath + "assignments_" + assignmentsCounter + "_fullTexts";
         File dir = new File(directoryPath);
         if ( ! dir.isDirectory() ) {
-            logger.error("The \"addRReportResultToWorker\"-endpoint was called for an unknown \"assignmentsCounter\": " + assignmentsCounter);
+            logger.error("The \"addReportResultToWorker\"-endpoint was called for an unknown \"assignmentsCounter\": " + assignmentsCounter);
             return ResponseEntity.notFound().build();
         }