60 Organizations Across The UK Are Taking Part In A 4-Day Working Week Trial Including This Black Tech Founder’s Non-Profit

Some 60 organizations have signed up for what is thought to be the biggest ever worldwide pilot of a four-day working week.

The trial will run for six months from June and see more than 3,000 workers participate.

There will be no loss in pay for employees working one fewer day a week – instead, they will be asked to maintain 100% productivity for 80% of their time.

It comes as new research last month found some 72% of office workers in the UK said they would prefer a four-day working week.

Countdown star Dr. Anne-Marie Imafidon, who stood in as replacement host for Rachel Riley whilst she was off on maternity leave with baby number two, wrote on Linkedin: “My non-profit Stemettes is one of 60 companies in the UK’s 4 day work week trial beginning in June.

“The pilot organized by 4 Day Week Global in partnership with think tank Autonomy, the 4 Day Week UK Campaign, and researchers at University of Cambridge, University of Oxford and Boston College.”

Imafidon is a mathematician and entrepreneur and was voted the most influential woman in UK IT 2020.

She runs Stemettes, a social enterprise that encourages girls and young women aged 5–25 to pursue science, Technology, Engineering, and math careers.

Stemettes was started in 2013 by the computing child prodigy and in 2015, Jacquelyn Guderley became a co-founder of Stemettes alongside Imafidon.

Stemettes has partnered with organizations including Deutsche Bank, Salesforce, Accenture, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, BP, and Microsoft. The organization is regularly called upon by the UK Government and European Commission to consult on matters related to women in STEM.

For six weeks from July to August 2015, Stemettes ran Outbox Incubator in London. This residential business incubator for girls with STEM start-ups became known as the “X-men house for girls”.

In February 2016, the Outbox Incubator spin-off app, OtotheB, was officially launched. The app is an online platform for girls interested in STEM and entrepreneurship.

The app has been well received by some STEM figures such as academic and campaigner Sue Black, who described the app as a “…fantastic new resource for young women interested in technology