(Adds statement from Shell and Motiva.)
HOUSTON, Sept 16 (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell Plc's U.S. subsidiary Shell Oil Co and the company's MotivaEnterprises joint-venture with Saudi Aramco have agreed to pay $4.5 million in back overtimewages to 2,677 current and former employees, the U.S. Departmentof Labor said on Tuesday.
The Labor Department's investigators found workers at Shell and Motiva chemical plants and crude oil refineries on the U.S.Gulf and West coasts were not paid for mandatory pre-shiftmeetings in violation of the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act.
"Employers are legally required to pay workers for all hoursworked, whether in the international oil industry, as in thiscase, or a local family-run restaurant." said U.S. Secretary ofLabor Thomas E. Perez.
A spokeswoman for Shell and Motiva said the companiescooperated with Labor Department investigators.
"Shell and Motiva each remain committed to compliance withthe Fair Labor Standards Act and both have consistentlydemonstrated their own compliance efforts involving the FairLabor Standards Act," said spokeswoman Kimberly Windon. (Reporting by Erwin Seba; Editing by Chris Reese and AndreGrenon)
