They’re getting a leg up on the job.
Businessmen, executives and finance bros are spicing up their clothes this summer, ditching stuffy slacks in the workplace for breezy, leisurely shorts to beat the heat.
Unfortunately, while guys on the grind are enjoying the airy wardrobe swap, gals grossed out by their body hair desperately want the fashion fad to come to a full stop, per reports.
It’s the hottest controversy of the hot season.
“Headed to the office in shorts. I never [gave a f- -k],” Jon, 32, a NYC 9-to-5er, defiantly captioned footage of his workwear this month, pairing a pair of knee-length black bottoms with an open, short -sleeve pinstripe button-up atop a white T-shirt.
The stylish nonconformist completed the lax look with a touch of corporate formality, wearing high socks with loafers and accessorizing with a sophisticated carryall.
From the Big Apple to Great Britain and beyond, men on the clock are dressing like Jon, sidestepping longstanding white-collar uniform codes as temperatures surge to sweltering highs.
New Yorkers have been forced to slog through city streets in three-digit temps throughout June and July, with blazing conditions reaching the feel-like level of 107 degrees. Europeans, too, endured a “deadly” heatwave, suffering through a peak recorded temp of 111.7 degrees (44.3 degrees Celsius) in recent weeks.
Amid the scorching madness, most employees have given their stamps of approval on dudes showing a little skin at their desks.
In fact, new 2026 data reveals that 68% of UK staffers say it is acceptable for men to wear shorts in the office. That’s nearly double the amount of folks who were amenable to the unconventional garb in 2016, underscoring society’s post-pandemic lean away from the traditional.
Still, not everyone is supportive of the sporty swing.
Women at work in Tokyo have accused their male colleagues of “sunehara” — Japanese slang meaning “leg hair harassment” — blasting the shorts-on-shift craze in repulsion of fuzzy shins, calves and thighs, according to the BBC.
But in the US, the land of the free and the home of the brave, professional men are shamelessly flaunting the fur they don’t shave.
Spencer, a Gotham-based go-getter, posed in a preppy, yet casual work outfit, featuring beige pleated shorts, a light blue button-up, a sweater and sneakers, insisting, “the coldest summer is an over-[air-conditioned] office,” beneath a viral video of his getup.
Winston Jones, another concrete jungle jobholder, echoed similar sentiments while encouraging men of the trend to keep workplace modesty in mind.
“Most places don’t accept wearing shorts, but times have changed,” he argued in a post. “However, there is a fine line and respectability we need to approach [when] wearing shorts to the office.”
The fashion influencer, with an audience of over 235,000 viewers, recommended guys choose Bermuda shorts for their length and loose fit. He even modeled the cutoffs for fans, wowing in a summer wool pair he admittedly snagged from the women’s department of Banana Republic.
“My thigh is not exposed, even when I sit down or raise my leg up,” said Jones. “My calves are still out, but that’s OK.”
“This is probably the best way to wear shorts to an office, if your office culture allows it.”
