Freelancers Make Up 34 Percent of the U.S. Workforce. Here’s How to Find, Hire and Manage Them. Posted by May 24, 2016 Leave a comment on Freelancers Make Up 34 Percent of the U.S. Workforce. Here’s How to Find, Hire and Manage Them. As full-time employees shift to non-employees in the age of the “gig economy,” you’ve got to learn how to handle this external workforce.