Employer-Paid

Foreign students working at a candy warehouse protested conditions and pay for a second day Thursday, chanting on Chocolate Avenue under streetlights shaped like Hershey's Kisses, arguing that they were employed under the guise of a cultural exchange but toil away in what amounts to a sweets sweatshop.

The White House has asked federal agencies to propose ways to cut spending by 10 percent or more for the upcoming budget, underscoring the political jockeying under way as President Barack Obama and Congress prepare for a fiery autumn clash over the economy and the debt.

Discouraging economic data from around the globe have heightened fears that another recession is on the way.

Union leaders are calling on the Postal Service to disavow a proposal to slash up to 120,000 jobs.

The U.S. Department of Labor is issuing a $918,010 National Emergency Grant to 325 laid-off workers who lost employment at Polaris Industries in Osceola, Wis., and Robin Manufacturing USA Inc. in Hudson, Wis., to help them find new jobs.

Connecticut's state employee unions announced Thursday that rank-and-file members ratified a labor savings and concessions agreement, giving Gov. Dannel P. Malloy the go-ahead to rescind thousands of layoff notices and forgo additional state budget cuts.