Apples to Apples

From the NY Times blog, Economix, this is a look at how this recession compares to past recessions. Although the unemployment rate is generally a concern of macroeconomics, we can analyse the labor market with a micro-prespective. From the graph, how do you compare this recession to those of the past? Would you say that there is a shortage or a surplus of labor in the market? Thinking back to the superbowl blog post, if a lot of demanders caused the price of tickets to increase, what will likely happen to the price of labor (i.e. wages) in this economic climate?