´óÏó´«Ã½

A planned strike of NHS workers in Wales over a long-running dispute about pay has been suspended.

Thousands of Unison members were due to walk out on Monday as part of a series of stoppages by health workers.

It was in response to a Welsh government offer of a £160 one-off payment in lieu of a rise.

The union said its members will now be consulted on new proposals put forward, which it said were a "significant improvement".

Staff were planning a half-day stoppage, followed by a week of action short of strike action.

The union's head of health in Wales, Dawn Bowden, said: "These new proposals are a significant improvement for our members and the result of weeks of tough negotiations with the Welsh government.

"It is right that our NHS members now have a say and we will consult them on the new proposals."

Unison previously said its members in Wales had voted by almost 4-1 in favour of strikes and by 9-1 for other forms of industrial action.

More than 5,700 took part in the ballot.

Last month, thousands of health workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, took part in a strike in England and Northern Ireland in a dispute over pay.