A BINMAN who was banned from wearing shorts by his bosses managed to beat the rules in the best way.

Lee Moran, 50, was ordered to cover up by York City Council chiefs on "health and safety" grounds despite the scorching heatwave.

The dad-of-three had protested about wearing his weighty uniform in the height of summer for years as it left him sweltering.

But the dedicated binman was always told that harsh health and safety rules didn't permit workers to wear shorts instead.

Lee then discovered this wasn't entirely true after taking matters into his own hands and researching the policy online.

He claims his managers later confessed the ban was actually in place to protect their "public image".

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However, one boss did let slip that kilts were permitted – presenting a surprising solution for the 50-year-old.

So while doing his rounds on Monday as the mercury soared, the dad donned a fluorescent orange kilt in defiance of the controversial policy on shorts.

He says the response to his dress-code demonstration has been "absolutely amazing".

Lee splashed £60 on the knee-length skirt from a supplier in Canada, but says it was worth every penny to keep him cool.

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The bold binman explained: "The public response has been absolutely amazing, and I've even had some City of York councillors ring me and message me saying, 'We're right behind you'.

"Instead of going to work like I normally do, I met up on the job.

"I had my normal work attire on, and I waited for the manager to ring the driver to see if I had the kilt on.

"As soon as the manager rang up, I got changed into the kilt and worked all day in it.

"My workmates are all for it and that," he laughed. "They loved it.

"For the last five years, I've been asking about wearing shorts, and they've just slung health and safety at me left right and centre.

"But one of the managers approached me and said 'look, Lee, you can wear a kilt. There's nothing about wearing a kilt'.

"So I waited until the temperature reached over 25C, and Monday was the perfect opportunity for it."

Lee told how he turned detective to delve into the details of the so-called health and safety policy.

The dad said: "I've looked at the health and safety laws, and there are no laws regarding binmen wearing shorts.

"It's up to our managers and health and safety at work.

"So I just put it forward to the managers, 'Why are you using health and safety as an excuse when basically, it's just public image?'

"One of the managers then admitted it was basically due to 'reputation', so I said, 'We're sweating, doing hard work in the sun just to look good for the public?'

"I said, 'It's alright saying 'health and safety' but you're not taking our well-being into consideration at the same time.

"We're sweating in these trousers, we're at risk of collapse."

It comes as binmen told Brits it was "too hot" to collect rubbish in the unbelievable heat.

South Oxfordshire District Council have told residents to leave their rubbish out for two days after their originally scheduled collection if they are not emptied.

But Lee, who at sites works across the city of York from Monday to Friday, said the public were firmly backing the binman's plight.

We're sweating in these trousers, we're at risk of collapse.

He continued: "Loads of people came up.

"They wondered why I was wearing a kilt, so I explained to them and they said 'That's ridiculous, I can't believe they won't let you wear shorts'."

The 50-year-old now hopes that York City Council will change their strict no shorts policy, like some other lenient local authorities.

And as the temperatures are set to climb to a stifling 40C next week, he wants bosses to act fast – as the Met Office issued a "danger to life" amber warning.

He added: "We're saying we need this now – we don't want to be waiting another week, it's going to be red hot next week.

"They said, 'these things take time', but we haven't got time. The weather isn't going to wait for us."

Ben Grabham, head of environmental services at City of York Council, told the Mirror: “We’re all experiencing hot weather at the moment so can sympathise with anyone working in the direct sun.

"The health, safety and well-being of our staff is paramount.

"The reason our waste collection crews wear trousers is to protect them against sharp objects that may be contained in recycling boxes or in bags.

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"We appreciate that working outdoors at this moment is very warm and we’re supporting our crews who are encouraged to take regular rest breaks and wear hats and sun cream that they are provided with.

“We’re undertaking a review of all our operations in extreme weather with our health and safety team, but we’re not sure a kilt will necessarily be the right option for our staff.”

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