Three years after the recession officially ended in June 2009 some 24.6 million people are unemployed, underemployed, and marginally employed.

This Mckinsey & Co. chart powerfully illustrates how bad the current job market is compared to previous recoveries.

Looking ahead, the number to keep in mind is that it will take at least 21 million net new jobs over the coming decade to return to a 5 percent unemployment rate.

The consulting firm offers up thoughts on how to rev up the U.S. job engine. I just wish Washington was debating ideas along the lines suggested by the report rather than posturing on the debt and deficit.