diff --git a/Jenkinsfile b/Jenkinsfile
index 73525ca..730a3cf 100644
--- a/Jenkinsfile
+++ b/Jenkinsfile
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ pipeline {
         stage ('Initialize variables') {
             steps {
                 script {
-                        def lastVersion = sh(script: "git describe --tags --abbrev=0", returnStdout: true).trim()
+                        def lastVersion = sh(script: "git describe --tags --abbrev=0", returnStdout: true).trim() || null
                         
                         if (!lastVersion) {
                             lastVersion = "0.0.0"
@@ -82,7 +82,7 @@ pipeline {
             script {
                 if (env.CHANGE_BRANCH?.startsWith('rc')) { 
                     echo "Attempting to merge PR ${env.CHANGE_ID} into master..."
-                    def commitHash = sh(script: "git rev-parse HEAD~1", returnStdout: true).trim() || null
+                    def commitHash = sh(script: "git rev-parse HEAD~1", returnStdout: true).trim()
                     withCredentials([usernamePassword(credentialsId: 'gitea_creds', usernameVariable: 'GITEA_USER', passwordVariable: 'GITEA_PASS')]) {
                         def prId = env.CHANGE_ID
                         echo "GIT_COMMIT: ${env.GIT_COMMIT}"