If you take a look at the Figure I mentioned in my previous post you will find a relationship linking unemployment and the change rate of labor force level, i.e. employment + unemployment:

UE(t)= 0.021 + 2.2dLF(t-5)/LF(t-5)

This relationship is a linear lagged function with 5 years lag of unemployment behind labor force change.
The change rate of labor force has been decreasing since 2000 (see bls.gov). Thus, the unemployment has been also decreasing since 2005.
Labor force started to increase at a higher rate last year. So, in 5 years we will observe an unemployment pick up. This will happen if the relationship, which has been valid from 1960, holds in the future.
I do not see any reason this relationship to fail.

P.S. It is not enough place and time for details. But you can find my papers on unemployment (and inflation) prediction for Germany, France, Australia, Canada, Japan, Austria. Everywhere similar linear relationships hold.

Economics as a theory needs a consistent definition. Actually , as in hard sciences it should not be even some absolute measure of true unemployment (employment, inflaiton, etc.) but should give a constant portion of this true value. For example, we were always sure that definition of mass is absolute, but now it looks like we did not count in some bigger portion called darl matter. This omitted mass does not change our equations , however. Same is with unemployment. If one consistently measured a constant portion of true unemployment it is enought for theoretical considration and search for actual links between measured economic variables.
In that sense, the discussion about “hidden” unemployment or biased measurements is less appropriate. We just need same definition over time – not randomly changing from miles per hour to kph.
Using consistent definition and measurements one can reveal real links between economic variable. As an example: there is a (lagged linear) trade-off between unemployment and the change rate of labor force in the USA. This figure
http://www.geocities.com/iokitov/uelf5.gif
illustrates the link. As the figure shows, unemployment in the USA will be decreasing the next five years, with some possible real and measurement related monthly flucs, however.

Inflation is also on a downward trend.

Thanks, Just added it to links. I am interested in free speech and Web censorship.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/us/04bar.html?_r=1&st=cse&sq=domain&scp=5&oref=slogin

We should then be able to determine the number of those not working through simple arithmetic, without being bamboozled by government manipulations.

I would expect that the government and corporate bigwigs would fight such a proposal. Facing the true numbers of those out-of-work would not fit well into all the hogwash about how good the economy is.