diff --git a/.buildkite/commands/checkout-release-branch.sh b/.buildkite/commands/checkout-release-branch.sh
index f06ad3d85c69..0650af0d1d41 100755
--- a/.buildkite/commands/checkout-release-branch.sh
+++ b/.buildkite/commands/checkout-release-branch.sh
@@ -1,16 +1,38 @@
 #!/bin/bash -eu
 
-echo '--- :git: Checkout release branch'
+# Checks out the `release/*` branch for a given release version.
+#
+# Usage: checkout-release-branch.sh [<RELEASE_VERSION>]
+#
+# The release version is taken from the first of these that is set and non-empty:
+#  1. the first argument
+#  2. the `RELEASE_VERSION` environment variable
+#  3. the `release/*` branch the build is running on, via `BUILDKITE_BRANCH`
+#
+# Buildkite, by default, checks out a specific commit, ending up in a detached HEAD state.
+# But some release steps need to be on the `release/*` branch instead, namely:
+#  - when a `release-pipelines/*.yml` needs to `git push` to the `release/*` branch (for version bumps)
+#  - when a job `pipeline upload`'d by such a pipeline builds from that branch, so that the build
+#    includes the commit that the version bump just added.
 
-RELEASE_NUMBER=$1
+echo "--- :git: Checkout Release Branch"
 
-if [[ -z "${RELEASE_NUMBER}" ]]; then
-    echo "Usage $0 <release number, e.g. 1.2.3>"
-    exit 1
+RELEASE_VERSION="${1:-${RELEASE_VERSION:-}}"
+
+if [[ -z "$RELEASE_VERSION" && "${BUILDKITE_BRANCH:-}" =~ ^release/ ]]; then
+  RELEASE_VERSION="${BUILDKITE_BRANCH#release/}"
+fi
+
+if [[ -z "$RELEASE_VERSION" ]]; then
+  echo "Error: no release version. Pass it as \$1, set RELEASE_VERSION, or run on a release/* branch." >&2
+  exit 1
 fi
 
-# Buildkite, by default, checks out a specific commit.
-# For many release actions, we need to be on a release branch instead.
-BRANCH_NAME="release/${RELEASE_NUMBER}"
+BRANCH_NAME="release/${RELEASE_VERSION}"
 git fetch origin "$BRANCH_NAME"
 git checkout "$BRANCH_NAME"
+# Buildkite can reuse a working copy where "$BRANCH_NAME" was left at a different commit by a previous job,
+# so force the local branch to the fetched commit.
+#  - `reset --hard` rather than `git pull`, to avoid merging if the two diverged
+#  - `FETCH_HEAD` rather than `origin/$BRANCH_NAME`, which `git fetch <branch>` only updates opportunistically.
+git reset --hard FETCH_HEAD