About 70 UK firms started a four-day work week trial from Monday, without cutting salaries or sacrificing revenues.
The world's biggest pilot scheme involves thousands of workers, ranging from a local fish and chip shop to large financial companies. The four day work week will be continued for six months until January 2023, agencies reported.
During the trial, employees will get 100 per cent pay for 80 per cent of the hours they would usually work, with the aim of being more productive.
The programme is being organised by not-for-profit 4 Day Week Global, Autonomy, a think tank, and the 4 Day Week UK Campaign in partnership with researchers from the Cambridge University, the Oxford University and the Boston College.
Similar trials have also taken place in Spain, Iceland, the United States and Canada. Australia and New Zealand are scheduled to start theirs in August.
Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, a programme manager at 4 Day Week Global, the campaign group behind the trial, said it will give firms "more time" to work through challenges, experiment with new practices and gather data.
Smaller organisations should find it easier to adapt, as they can make big changes more readily, he told AFP.
Pressure Drop, based in Tottenham Hale, is hoping the experiment will not only improve their employees' productivity but also their well-being.
At the same time, it will reduce their carbon footprint.
The Royal Society of Biology, another participant in the trial, says it wants to give employees "more autonomy over their time and working patterns".
Both hope a shorter working week could help them retain employees, at a time when UK businesses are confronted with severe staff shortages, and job vacancies hitting a record 1.3 million.
