diff --git a/vllm/v1/engine/core.py b/vllm/v1/engine/core.py
index 11f24cb1990a..25433cb7e4a6 100644
--- a/vllm/v1/engine/core.py
+++ b/vllm/v1/engine/core.py
@@ -1578,7 +1578,7 @@ def _handle_client_request(
                 new_wave >= self.current_wave
             ):
                 self.current_wave = new_wave
-                if not self.engines_running:
+                if not self.engines_running and not self.is_scheduler_paused():
                     logger.debug("EngineCore starting idle loop for wave %d.", new_wave)
                     self.engines_running = True
         else: