diff --git a/.github/workflows/automerge.yml b/.github/workflows/automerge.yml
index 9253675..116b806 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/automerge.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/automerge.yml
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ jobs:
         env:
           GITHUB_TOKEN: "${{ secrets.GH_TOKEN }}"
           GITHUB_LOGIN: asyncapi-bot
-          MERGE_LABELS: ""
+          MERGE_LABELS: "!do-not-merge"
           MERGE_METHOD: "squash"
           MERGE_COMMIT_MESSAGE: "{pullRequest.title} (#{pullRequest.number})"
           MERGE_RETRIES: "20"
diff --git a/CODEOWNERS b/CODEOWNERS
index e63f4df..b95b87c 100644
--- a/CODEOWNERS
+++ b/CODEOWNERS
@@ -5,4 +5,4 @@
 # For more details, read the following article on GitHub: https://help.github.com/articles/about-codeowners/.
 
 # The default owners are automatically added as reviewers when you open a pull request unless different owners are specified in the file.
-* @Souvikns @derberg @asyncapi-bot-eve
+* @Souvikns @aeworxet @asyncapi-bot-eve