Two 24-hour bus strikes scheduled to go ahead this week and next have been postponed. 

Members of the Unite union were due to walk out on Friday and again on Monday as part of a campaign for a single pay and conditions agreement across London's 18 bus operators.

Unite say they have postponed the strikes as a "goodwill" gesture which they say could benefit any negotiations with the operators. 

So far 20,000 bus workers have walked out during two days of strike action this year. 

Unite regional officer, Wayne King said: "We call on the capital’s bus operators to seize this window of opportunity and join us collectively in talks at Acas. There can be no excuses for them not to. 

"We’ve postponed the two days of strike action in an act of goodwill and we are not asking them to break competition law by meeting us collectively. The ball is firmly in the court of London’s bus companies. 

"They have a duty to London’s 6.8 million bus passengers to join us in collective talks to end the pay inequality and pay chaos on London’s buses.

"All we are asking for is a collective forum to discuss how we can end pay disparities over a sensible timeframe."

He warned London's bus companies that if they fail to enter into talks now, the strike action will go ahead.