diff --git a/config/initializers/resque.rb b/config/initializers/resque.rb
index 13a71e19..5b8e4ddb 100644
--- a/config/initializers/resque.rb
+++ b/config/initializers/resque.rb
@@ -1,3 +1,9 @@
+# Sometimes the Resque workers have trouble maintaining their connections to
+# Redis and to the database. It's not entirely clear when and why (though the
+# internet suggests that it has to do with lying dormant for too long), but
+# this fix ensures that Redis and the database are available at the start of
+# every job.
 Resque.after_fork do
   Resque.redis.client.reconnect
+  ActiveRecord::Base.connection_handler.verify_active_connections!
 end