The binmen strike in Brighton and Hove has been suspended for 28 days.

Cityclean workers and union bosses today met Brighton and Hove City Council officials at the Hollingdean depot.

Workers told The Argus the two-week strike had been suspended, but they would not comment further.

The Argus has been told that the deal will mean that Cityclean workers are classed as skilled, meaning most staff will be on the same wages, with some even possibly getting more.

It is believed that 97% of staff will see their dispute resolved in this way.

Talks will continue to try to reach a solution for the remaining 3%.

If no agreement can be reached, it is likely staff will go on strike again after 28 days.

GMB official Mark Turner said: "After only two days of all-out industrial action the streets of Brighton were piled high with rubbish and the council found itself under increasing pressure from residents to resolve the dispute.

"Negotiations have moved in the right direction which meant we were in a position to be able to put the renewed offer to the members.

"The support from the public has been phenomenal and clearly shows that the people of Brighton are on the side of GMB members in this dispute."

Council leader Mary Mears said: "We’re delighted the GMB union has decided to suspend the strike so that normal rubbish collections can resume. We will now resume talks about the details of our proposal.

"While we can’t go into this offer, we can say that we have aimed to meet our legal and moral duty to pay employees fairly without passing on unnecessary costs to council taxpayers.

"Although the strike has lasted only two days, it will take a short while for the council to catch up on any missed collections and we’d ask for residents’ patience during this brief period.

"We have a hard working and dedicated workforce, which we are proud of, and I’m confident they will get the job done as quickly as possible."