ELLWOOD CITY — ESB Bank on March 5 recognized the community involvement of its employees during a luncheon at the Connoquenessing Country Club near Ellwood City.

During 2013, 99 employees donated a total of 4,305 hours of service to various organizations.

Also, the bank honored 29 “shining star” employees who the bank said demonstrated its core values of integrity, excellence, teamwork, community involvement and leadership.

Since the bank established a formal community service program in 2003, employees have donated more than 33,000 hours of community service.

ESB, headquartered in Ellwood City, has 23 offices in Western Pennsylvania, including three in Butler County.

CRANBERRY TWP — Regus, which leases office space around the world, on March 27 celebrated the grand opening of its location at the Cranberry Crossroads development with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.Regus, based in Addison, Texas, provides executive suites and flexible workspaces in about 1,800 locations in 100 countries.The Cranberry location, at 2009 Mackenzie Way, Suite 100, officially opened Dec. 23. It has 80 offices, a business lounge, two conference rooms and other amenities for business professionals. The new site is the company's fourth in the Pittsburgh region.

NEW BRITAIN, Conn. — Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy signed legislation Thursday that will raise Connecticut's minimum wage to $10.10 an hour by 2017, the highest rate for any state in the country.Connecticut's Democratic-controlled state House and Senate approved the bill with only Democrats supporting the legislation. The bill will increase the state's current minimum hourly wage of $8.70 to $9.15 on Jan. 1, 2015, to $9.60 in January 2016 and to $10.10 in January 2017.

WASHINGTON — About half of all payday loans are made to people who extend the loans so many times they end up paying more in fees than the original amount they borrowed, a report by a federal watchdog has found.The report released by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau also shows that four of five payday loans are extended, or “rolled over,” within 14 days. Additional fees are charged when loans are rolled over.Payday loans, also known as cash advances, are short-term loans at high interest rates.

WASHINGTON — U.S. consumer sentiment slipped in March from the previous month, as Americans said they were less likely to buy cars and homes because of slightly higher interest rates.The University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index dipped to 80 in March from 81.6 in February. That's still about five points higher than last fall, when sentiment fell during the government shutdown.From staff and wire sources