THE ongoing bin dispute between the GMB and the council could soon be at an end, with the union set to put a council offer to members.

A formal resolution proposal, put forward by Brighton and Hove City Council in talks yesterday, includes a “significant and generous pay offer,” benefitting some of the lowest paid staff across the whole council, as well as the Cityclean service.

If both sides reach agreement, five weeks of industrial action, due to take place from this Thursday, will be cancelled.

Any deal will also need to be approved by the council’s policy and resources committee.

Refuse workers are back at work today across the city following a fortnight of strike action.

Waste has piled up at overflowing bins across the city over the last two weeks, with the council bringing in third parties to clear up the worst of the rubbish.

A council spokesperson said while they “fully respect the decision made by some Cityclean staff to strike,” the decision was taken to use contractors to address the “growing and serious health and safety issues”.

They cited blocked pavements, vermin being attracted to rubbish and a spate of bin fires as reasons behind the need for waste disposal contractors to be brought in to clear side waste and bin storerooms.

At the time of the announcement, the GMB said the council had acted to “undermine the strike rather than sorting out the dispute”.

Refuse workers began their two week walk out on October 5 in a dispute over working conditions, with ballot of GMB members held last month receiving unanimous support for strike action.

The news of a potential deal comes after a week of tense relations between the union and the council, with the GMB claiming an initial agreement was taken off the table in talks last Monday and with a councillor comparing strikers to terrorists in a council meeting.

Have you got a story for us? Email news@theargus.co.uk or contact us here.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to keep up with all the latest news.

Sign up to our newsletter to get updates sent straight to your inbox.

You can also call us on 01273 021 400.