HOUSTON -- A month-long protest by Houston-area janitors that included arrests and public demonstrations ended with a tentative agreement Monday, KPRC Local 2 reported.

Houston Mayor Bill White and the union president made the announcement at about 4 p.m.

About 1,700 janitors belonging to the Service Employees International Union went on strike on Oct. 23. They targeted five local cleaning companies, demanding health benefits and a salary increase from the current $5.30 an hour to $8.50.

The janitors were scheduled to meet Monday evening to vote on the agreement. The specifics of the agreement will be released after the vote is finalized. It is expected to pass.

"I will share one statistic with you -- that in the first 24 months of this agreement, the annual income of janitors will increase 126 percent," said Tom Balanoff, the president of the SEIU Local One Union.

"This is a good day for Houston, Texas, and a good day for a lot of the people who work hard in our community," White said. "I applaud the contractors to bargaining in good faith over a long weekend."

The contractors did not reveal why the negotiations resumed after a long stalemate.