Labor

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After largely avoiding labor-based controversy, Target is facing the same union opposition that has plagued rival Wal-Mart. Target had its first union election in two decades in June at a Valley Stream, N.Y., store, after employees made allegations of skimpy wages and reduced hours. (Associated Press)

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The NBA laid off 114 workers, but a league spokesman said Thursday that they are "not a direct result of the lockout." (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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Palestinian Fayza Al Louh's three-story house in northern Gaza Strip is still in ruins after being damaged in an Israeli offensive in January 2009. Israel has kept restrictions on the construction and export sectors, and unemployment is near 50 percent. (Associated Press)

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D.C. Mayor Vincent C. Gray has withdrawn a security contract with the District, currently held by U.S. Security Associates, citing D.C. Council concerns about employment practices. (Rod Lamkey Jr./The Washington Times)

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President Obama heads to the Oval Office after making a statement about the unemployment numbers in the Rose Garden of the White House on July 8, 2011. (Associated Press)

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A job seeker looks at a bulletin at the Texas Workforce Commission's Workforce Solutions of Greater Dallas job resource center in Richardson, Texas, on July 5, 2011. (Associated Press)

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** FILE ** In this June 15, 2011, photo, people walk past a "now hiring" sign outside the future site of a Uniqlo clothing store, in New York. The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits changed little last week, evidence that the struggling economy isn’t generating many jobs. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

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The new comedy "Horrible Bosses" features Kevin Spacey (right) as the sadistic employer of Jason Bateman's character. (Warner Bros. Pictures via Associated Press)

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In the new comedy "Horrible Bosses," Jennifer Aniston plays a sexually deviant dentist who harasses her assistant (Charlie Day). The film centers around three employees who hatch a plot to kill each other's bosses. (Warner Bros. Pictures via Associated Press)

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David Serrell, a Texas Workforce Commission supervisor, manages job seekers' time on computers at the Workforce Solutions of Greater Dallas job resource center in Richardson, Texas, on Tuesday, July 5, 2011. (AP Photo/L.M. Otero)

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Connecticut Gov. Dan Malloy signed the measure on paid sick leave into law Friday but didn't announce his action until Tuesday. (Associated Press)

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**FILE** In this photo from July 1, 2011, John Rosas, an employee with the metal works factory Wizard of Metals, cuts steel in San Francisco. (Associated Press)

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Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn, a Democrat, wants to cancel raises for state employees to help cope with the state's budget crisis. Skipping the 2 percent raises would save the state $77 million. (Associated Press)

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College lecturers picket outside Croydon College in south London as thousands of public-service workers and teachers in the United Kingdom strike over pension cuts on Thursday, June 30, 2011. (AP Photo/Sang Tan)

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Larry Vernon of Canton, Mich., fills out an application during a job fair in Southfield, Mich., a suburb of Detroit, on Wednesday, June 15, 2011. The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits changed little last week, evidence that the struggling economy isn’t generating many jobs. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

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** FILE ** Rick Rivera (center), a retired schoolteacher from Upper Freehold, N.J., sports on his back a picture of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie with Mickey Mouse ears as Mr. Rivera and public employee union members protest near the Statehouse in Trenton, N.J., on Monday, June 20, 2011. The state Senate and Assembly were debating a bill requiring sharply higher pension and health care contributions from public employees. The governor signed the legislation on Tuesday, June 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)