Two days of strike, for a surprising reason: the right to wear long shorts and to leave knees and calves exposed to the air. In June 2025, the garbage collectors of the city of Niort (Deux-Sèvres) mobilized to maintain this exemption, called into question by the Niortais urban community. “Behind the dumpster, it was unbearable during the heatwave: the trucks blow hot air, there is sometimes no air conditioning and the concrete reflects the heat,” laments Mickaël Billy, scavenger and CGT union representative. The city puts forward security reasons, but ultimately decides to tolerate the wearing of Bermuda shorts during the orange and red heatwave alerts from Météo France. The trade unionist recalls that he has worn Bermuda shorts at work in the summer “since 1996”, without having had any problems and believes that the movement, widely followed, could resume in September.
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