Police took to wearing camo pants on the job in the summer of 2008. (CBC)

Montreal police are hanging up their camouflage pants after reaching a deal to settle their contract dispute through arbitration.

Officers have been wearing red caps, camo pants, jeans and sometimes pyjamas since last summer as a pressure tactic in their ongoing labour dispute with the City of Montreal.

The union representing officers — the Police Brotherhood — has agreed to settle the dispute with binding retroactive arbitration covering the time period elapsed since the force's contract expired in January 2007.

The agreement means officers will see their salaries settled sooner rather than later.

"We're going to have a decision on salaries for 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 before the end of the year," said Police Brotherhood president Yves Francoeur.

Otherwise officers would have been in salary limbo as long as the dispute stretched out, Francoeur said.

It's now up to the arbitrator to decide what's fair for both sides, said Chief Inspector Paul Chablo.

"There has to be a balance. It's not an easy job to do. There has to be balance where taxpayers aren't given an extra burden, where the police officers get an increase — at least equivalent to a cost of living," Chablo said.

The City of Montreal announced last year it was invoking a salary freeze for all municipal employees this year because of a projected deficit.

The police union has been holding out for a three per cent increase over all four years.

Montreal officers are ranked 20th in terms of salary out of Quebec's 34 police forces, despite facing the biggest dangers on the job because of crime rates on the island, Francoeur.

Officers in camouflage pants and jeans raised the ire of city officials, who have gone twice to Quebec's Essential Services Council to try to stop the practice.

On both occasions, the council upheld officers' right to dress down as a pressure tactic.