WASHINGTON • On this Labor Day weekend, union leaders and U.S. business interests have similar concerns about the fragility of the nation's economic recovery, but they are offering drastically different remedies.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said Congress needed to approve a second stimulus program for the economy and allow former President George W. Bush's tax cuts to expire at the end of this year as scheduled.

"Our fear (is) that people in government will begin to pull back too quickly and threaten the recovery," Trumka said. "They have begun to pull back too quickly, not necessarily voluntarily, but because of the (partisanship) that we see up in the House, so the recovery right now is in jeopardy."

Officials of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce offered a different take, warning that increased regulation from Washington, letting the Bush tax cuts lapse and allowing proposed changes in the law that would make it easier for unions to organize workers would spell disaster for the economy and trigger further unemployment.

"Unfortunately for millions of Americans, the agenda currently being pursued by Washington has made it tougher for employers to hire new workers," said Randy Johnson, the chamber's senior vice president for labor, immigration and employee benefits. "It's hard to create jobs and drive the economy forward when you're worried about a blizzard of new rules and regulations built upon an already complex regime of employment laws."