HOUSTON, Jan 31 (Reuters) - The United Steelworkers union(USW) and Shell Oil Co are close to reaching an agreement onpay, benefits and safety issues that will cover 30,000 U.S.refinery, chemical plant and pipeline workers, three sourcesfamiliar with negotiations said on Thursday.
No details were available about the proposed pact, whichcomes nine hours before the current contract expires and strikescould begin. The USW and Shell Oil, the U.S. arm for Royal DutchShell Plc, have been negotiating a new labor contractsince Jan. 16.(Reporting by Erwin SebaEditing by Leslie Adler)