Retaining Part-Time, Contracted, and Freelance Talent

In today's dynamic job market, businesses increasingly rely on part-time workers, contractors, and freelancers to meet their needs. While this flexible approach to meeting your workforce needs has numerous advantages, retaining part-time or seasonal employees and encouraging independent contractors to continue providing services to your business can pose some unique challenges. 

If you’re looking for ideas and inspiration for ways to help keep your valuable contingent workers engaged, you’ve come to the right place. 

Understanding What Freelancers and Part-Time Workers Need

Before diving into strategies for retaining talent when the talent isn’t full-time, it's crucial to stop and think about the unique needs and motivations of part-timers, contractors, and freelancers. Unlike full-time employees, people who choose less-than-full-time schedules or gig work typically prioritize flexibility and autonomy. They’re also likely to prefer work that really utilizes their expertise. Recognizing these unique priorities is an important key to figuring out how to best retain them.

Engage in Clear, Open Communication

Clear and open communication is essential for retaining non-full-time talent. Be sure to clearly communicate project requirements and expectations and welcome questions and feedback from them every step of the way, just as you would with regular, full-time members of your team.   

Provide Competitive Compensation

Before hiring and retaining contracted, freelance or part-time workers, it’s important to understand the typical pay rate for non-salaried workers in your industry and area. Don’t forget that you won’t be paying typical employee benefits costs, and this should be accounted for in the compensation of contingent workers. Even if you offer some benefits to part-time employees, the expense to the company will be lower than with full-timers.

You should also keep in mind that freelancers and contractors are actually small business owners. They are likely to set their own rates to cover their time and expertise, along with the costs they incur that don’t apply to employees, such as overhead and self-employment tax. If you’re unable to meet their going rate, they’ll likely turn their attention to clients who will. This is critical to understand when your goal is retaining freelance talent. Scope your budget, scope your talent needs, and hire accordingly.

Respect Their Preference for Flexibility

One of the main draws for those who choose to work part-time or do contract work is its flexibility. Sure, steady work will likely be appreciated—but not if it comes at the expense of giving up the sense of freedom that comes with other than full-time work. Don’t lose sight of the fact that freelancers and contractors are not employees. They cannot be treated as such—and probably don’t want to be.  

If you hire these types of workers, it’s important to remember that they are not full-time members of your team. If you need or expect people to treat what they do for your company like a full-time job, then you should consider hiring them in that capacity. 

Share Recognition and Appreciation

Everyone likes to feel appreciated, and non-full-time workers are no exception. Taking the time to express appreciation will go a long way toward inspiring the part-time employees, freelancers, and contractors who work with your company to continue doing so. If you make sure they know your company appreciates them and values their expertise and talent, they’re certainly more likely to prioritize your organization when deciding where to accept assignments. 

Even the most independent freelancers have their favorite clients, and by taking the time to recognize the value of their contributions and express appreciation, you can increase the likelihood that you’re at the top of the list of businesses they always say “yes” to when project requests come in. 

Contribute to Building a Positive Company Culture

Treating part-timers, freelancers, and contractors well and being respectful of their needs plays an important role in retaining talent and building a strong company culture. The contributions of everyone who provides services for your company—full-time or part-time, independent contractor or employee— can influence how your company is perceived both internally and externally.

Inspiring part-time, contracted, and freelance talent to continue working with you requires a thoughtful approach that considers their unique needs and motivations. You should never lose sight of the fact that—just like people who prioritize full-time work—contingent workers have choices when it comes to deciding what companies they will sell their time to, which is what they are doing when they agree to provide services to your organization. 

By focusing on building positive relationships with reliable and talented individuals who work with your company in a contingent manner, you can play a significant role in helping your organization meet the full scope of its workforce needs.

How Justworks Can Help

Justworks does more than help clients streamline onboarding and payroll processes for full-time employees. We can also play a role in keeping things running smoothly with your contingent workforce as well. Our powerful software solution also simplifies the process of setting up and processing payroll for part-time employees and seasonal workers, as well as payments to contractors and independent contractors.

Our powerful HR tools and software streamline the recordkeeping and reporting requirements, and our customers can count on us for compliance assistance. If you’re looking for an easy-to-use solution that meets the needs of the full scope of your workforce—full-time, part-time, freelance, and even international contractors—Justworks has got your back. Contact us today to find out how to get started.