diff --git a/.github/workflows/docker-publish.yml b/.github/workflows/docker.yml
similarity index 50%
rename from .github/workflows/docker-publish.yml
rename to .github/workflows/docker.yml
index 14a4eb042..338ae85a9 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/docker-publish.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/docker.yml
@@ -5,84 +5,6 @@ on:
     branches: travis-multiarch-builds
 
 jobs:
-  tests:
-    runs-on: ${{ matrix.os }}
-    strategy:
-      matrix:
-        os: [ubuntu-20.04]
-        python: 
-          - 3.6.8
-          - 3.7.9
-          - 3.8.6
-    steps:
-    - uses: actions/checkout@v2
-    - name: Install python version
-      uses: gabrielfalcao/pyenv-action@v7
-      with:
-        default: "${{ matrix.python }}"
-        command: "pip install -U pip"
-    - name: Get pip cache dir
-      id: pip-cache
-      run: |
-        echo "::set-output name=dir::$(pip cache dir)"
-    - name: Persistent Github pip cache
-      uses: actions/cache@v2
-      with:
-        path: ${{ steps.pip-cache.outputs.dir }}
-        key: ${{ runner.os }}-pip${{ matrix.python }}
-    - name: Tests
-      env: 
-        GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
-      run: |
-        sudo apt-get update -qq
-        sudo apt-get install -qq libpoppler-cpp-dev unpaper tesseract-ocr imagemagick ghostscript optipng
-        pip install --upgrade pipenv
-        pipenv install --system --dev
-        cd src/
-        pipenv run pytest --cov
-        pipenv run pycodestyle
-        pipenv run coveralls
-  documentation:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-20.04
-    steps:
-    - uses: actions/checkout@v2
-    - name: Install python version
-      uses: gabrielfalcao/pyenv-action@v7
-      with:
-        default: "3.6.8"
-        command: "pip install -U pip"    
-    - name: Get pip cache dir
-      id: pip-cache
-      run: |
-        echo "::set-output name=dir::$(pip cache dir)"
-    - name: Persistent Github pip cache
-      uses: actions/cache@v2
-      with:
-        path: ${{ steps.pip-cache.outputs.dir }}
-        key: ${{ runner.os }}-pip3.6.8}
-    - name: dependencies
-      run: |
-        sudo apt-get update -qq
-        sudo apt-get install -qq libpoppler-cpp-dev unpaper tesseract-ocr imagemagick ghostscript optipng
-        pip install --upgrade pipenv
-        pipenv install --system --dev
-    - name: make
-      run: |
-        cd docs/
-        make html
-  frontend:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-20.04
-    steps:
-    - uses: actions/checkout@v2
-    - uses: actions/setup-node@v2
-      with:
-        node-version: '15'
-    - name: build
-      run: |
-        cd src-ui/
-        npm install -g @angular/cli
-        npm install
-        ng build --prod
   # Build and push image to docker hub.
   buildx:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
diff --git a/.github/workflows/documentation.yml b/.github/workflows/documentation.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..2e2e84e84
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/documentation.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+name: backend-tests
+
+# always run documentation workflow to ensure the documentation can still be built
+on: push
+
+# possibly add a publish job for automatic read-the-docs publishing
+jobs:
+  documentation:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-20.04
+    steps:
+    - uses: actions/checkout@v2
+    - name: Install python version
+      uses: gabrielfalcao/pyenv-action@v7
+      with:
+        default: "3.6.8"
+        command: "pip install -U pip"    
+    - name: Get pip cache dir
+      id: pip-cache
+      run: |
+        echo "::set-output name=dir::$(pip cache dir)"
+    - name: Persistent Github pip cache
+      uses: actions/cache@v2
+      with:
+        path: ${{ steps.pip-cache.outputs.dir }}
+        key: ${{ runner.os }}-pip3.6.8}
+    - name: dependencies
+      run: |
+        pip install 'sphinx~=3.3' sphinx_rtd_theme
+    - name: make
+      run: |
+        cd docs/
+        make html
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.github/workflows/frontend.yml b/.github/workflows/frontend.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..64df45127
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/frontend.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+
+
+jobs:
+  frontend:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-20.04
+    steps:
+    - uses: actions/checkout@v2
+    - uses: actions/setup-node@v2
+      with:
+        node-version: '15'
+    - name: build
+      run: |
+        cd src-ui/
+        npm install -g @angular/cli
+        npm install
+        ng build --prod
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.github/workflows/test.yml b/.github/workflows/test.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..930f368e7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/test.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,43 @@
+name: backend-tests
+
+# always run tests workflow
+on: push
+
+jobs:
+  tests:
+    runs-on: ${{ matrix.os }}
+    strategy:
+      matrix:
+        os: [ubuntu-20.04]
+        python: 
+          - 3.6.8
+          - 3.7.9
+          - 3.8.6
+    steps:
+    - uses: actions/checkout@v2
+    - name: Install python version
+      uses: gabrielfalcao/pyenv-action@v7
+      with:
+        default: "${{ matrix.python }}"
+        command: "pip install -U pip"
+    - name: Get pip cache dir
+      id: pip-cache
+      run: |
+        echo "::set-output name=dir::$(pip cache dir)"
+    - name: Persistent Github pip cache
+      uses: actions/cache@v2
+      with:
+        path: ${{ steps.pip-cache.outputs.dir }}
+        key: ${{ runner.os }}-pip${{ matrix.python }}
+    - name: Tests
+      env: 
+        GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+      run: |
+        sudo apt-get update -qq
+        sudo apt-get install -qq libpoppler-cpp-dev unpaper tesseract-ocr imagemagick ghostscript optipng
+        pip install --upgrade pipenv
+        pipenv install --system --dev
+        cd src/
+        pipenv run pytest --cov
+        pipenv run pycodestyle
+        pipenv run coveralls