Labor

Unemployment Benefits_Lea.jpg

Job seekers visit the Minneapolis Career Fair on Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2011, in Bloomington, Minn. Fewer people applied for unemployment benefits last week, a positive sign that the job market is picking up a bit. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

NORWOOD_2025

Jurors leave the Montgomery County Circuit Court in Rockville, Md., on Nov. 2, 2011, after Lululemon Athletica employee Brittany Norwood is found guilty of killing co-worker Jayna Murray. (Andrew Harnik/The Washington Times)

20111102-172728-pic-242032315.jpg

Occupy protesters march in the streets of Oakland, Calif., on Wednesday. Nurse, teacher and other worker unions are taking part in the protests, and Oakland is allowing city workers to use paid time to take part in the "general strike." (Associated Press)

20111101-213732-pic-863219202.jpg

"We don't have to sit back and allow a minority in the Congress, known as the tea party, to dominate the discussion in our households," Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis recently said.

Issa.JPG

Rep. Darrell E. Issa, California Republican, introduced the D.C. Employee Suitability Act of 2011 on Monday. It will get its first hearing Thursday. (Rod Lamkey Jr./The Washington Times)

ISSA_014_07251158.jpg

Rep. Darrell E. Issa, California Republican, introduced the D.C. Employee Suitability Act of 2011 on Monday. It will get its first hearing Thursday. (Rod Lamkey Jr./The Washington Times)

CRONYISM_001_032814.jpg

A congressional oversight panel criticized the vetting of Sulaimon Brown, who was hired and then fired this year from a city agency at the outset of the mayor's term. (Barbara L. Salisbury/The Washington Times)

Unemployment Benefits_Lea.jpg

Job seekers talk with prospective employers at a job fair on Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2011, in Brookpark, Ohio. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

Germany Euro Crisis_Lea.jpg

German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives at the Chancellery in Berlin on Monday, Oct. 24, 2011, to brief lawmakers on Sunday's European Union summit on the euro financial crisis. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Goodson.jpg

"I think they should inquire. With things being the way they are, you want to stay on top of things in terms of security." Gordon Goodson, unemployed, Falls Church, 63

20111023-153627-pic-922017589.jpg

Groupon employees Amanda Allegretti (left) and Becca Silvers work at the online-coupon company's offices Sept. 22 in Chicago. Online-coupon seller Groupon Inc. is discounting its expectations for its first stock offering in a regulatory filing Friday. (Associated Press)

Greece Financial Cris_Lea.jpg

Communist-backed union protesters run from a firebomb hurled by other demonstrators in Athens on Thursday, Oct. 20, 2011. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

APTOPIX Unemployment _Lea.jpg

Job seekers fill out applications during a job fair at the Citadel Outlets in Commerce, Calif., on Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2011. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

20111019-204457-pic-530609456.jpg

Members and leaders of the United Auto Workers line up to vote on their new contract last week at the Region 1 UAW headquarters in Warren, Mich. The labor deals are the first since the taxpayer bailouts approved by President Obama for GM and Chrysler in 2009. (Associated Press)

20111019-151133-pic-13938143.jpg

** FILE ** In this undated file photo provided by TLC, Kody Brown, center, poses with his wives, from left, Janelle, Christine, Meri and Robyn in a promotional photo for TLC's reality TV show, "Sister Wives." In new federal court papers, Kody Brown and his wives say they've lost jobs, were forced to move out of state and suffered "reputational" harm by a police investigation last year. (AP Photo/TLC, Bryant Livingston, File)

PAUL.jpg

Sen. Rand Paul, Kentucky Republican, speaks during a discussion by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions of legislation for the Elementary and Secondary Education Reauthorization Act, on Capitol Hill in Washington on Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2011. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

20111018-204921-pic-653194553.jpg

'DISABLED': Stanley Thornton Jr., who lives part of his life as an "adult baby," is demanding an apology from Sen. Tom Coburn, the Oklahoma Republican who called for the Social Security Administration to review his qualification for benefits. (NatGeoTV)