787 school cleaners in the Western Education and Library Board are set to benefit financially from a new job evaluation upgrading pay deal.

The GMB Union is currently consulting its members employed as school cleaners across Northern Ireland on the new pay deal which will move the hourly rate for school cleaners from scale One A to scale One C an uplift of approximately 83 pence per hour.

There are currently up to 4,000 thousand of school cleaners in Northern Ireland who will benefit from this deal.

Some of these cleaners hold down more than one part time job.

The deal is backdated to 1st January 2002. GMB estimates that about 3,500 of the current school cleaning workforce will be able to claim back pay all the way back to 1st January 2002.

They will share the estimated £15 to 20 million which it will cost the Northern Ireland education service to fund the back pay.

The deal going forward will be worth approximately £5.5 million per annum for the cleaning workforce.

Eammon Coy, GMB Senior Organiser said, "This historic break through has brought a matter that has been outstanding for six years to a very satisfactory conclusion. This watershed agreement recognises the role of cleaners and establishes a benchmark which has been long overdue."