The conventional "U3" unemployment rate shown above does not include those who've stopped looking for work, nor those wanting full-time work yet only able to find part time. The more inclusive "U6" unemployment rate is still nearly 15%. http://www.shadowstats.com/alternate_data/unemployment-charts

The Employment to Population ratio depicted by Paul Krugman, where higher numbers are better, also shows the dramatic downward shift three years ago that disturbingly shows little sign of improving. http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/07/the-employment-situation/