Binmen in Liverpool have returned to work after staging a sit-in when their employers tried to claw back extra money they were given by mistake.

Waste disposal firm Onyx accidentally paid double wages to the 190 workers in Liverpool just before Christmas due to a payroll error.

Bosses announced they planned to recoup the cash by docking wages over the next three months, taking back half the overpayment in January, a quarter in February and the final quarter in March.

Workers staged a sit-in at the company's depot in Aintree on Monday morning while GMB officials negotiated with Onyx management.

Workers 'furious'

The protest was called off at around 1500 GMT but a union spokeswoman said talks are continuing.

Onynx decided on a method of recouping the overpayments after consultation with the GMB but it prompted a furious reaction from refuse collectors.

A spokeswoman for the GMB was unable to confirm whether the action was an official strike.

A spokeswoman for Onyx said: "It is inappropriate to comment while negotiations are under way.

"That is all we are saying at this stage."