Shell, Motiva agree to pay back wages to workers - Labor Dept.
HOUSTON, Sept 16 (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell Plc (LSE: RDSA.L - news) 's U.S. subsidiary Shell Oil Co and the company's Motiva Enterprises joint-venture with Saudi Aramco have agreed to pay $4.5 million in back overtime wages to more than 2,000 current and former employees, the U.S. Department of Labor said on Tuesday.
The Labor Department's investigators found workers at Shell (LSE: RDSB.L - news) and Motiva chemical plants and crude oil refineries on the U.S. Gulf and West coasts were not paid for mandatory pre-shift meetings in violation of the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act.
Representatives for Shell and Motiva were not immediately available to comment.
"Employers are legally required to pay workers for all hours worked, whether in the international oil industry, as in this case, or a local family-run restaurant." said U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. (Reporting by Erwin Seba; Editing by Chris Reese)