A man sits in a cafe near the Old Street roundabout dubbed "Silicon Roundabout" in London May 28, 2013. East London's technology hub is established well beyond start-up status: Thousands of new web firms now work in the offices around Old Street and on any given day the area's coffee shops buzz with young hopefuls meeting advisers and investors. Photograph taken May 28, 2013. REUTERS/Luke MacGregor (BRITAIN - Tags: BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY TELECOMS) 
 
 Freelancers have long been a large part of the American workforce, albeit one that is largely misunderstood. But perceptions are changing. Freelancers used to be seen as people who were not very serious about their occupations; now they are increasingly empowered entrepreneurs choosing to build their own businesses or careers. And their numbers are huge: 55 million Americans freelanced this past year and their earnings from freelancing reached an estimated $1 trillion -- an enormous amount of money being brought into communities all across this country. 
 
 Our organizations commissioned a study together, for the third year running, and this year's Freelancing in Americasurvey shows that 35 percent of the U.S. workforce freelanced in 2016, making freelancers one of the largest segments of any type of worker. Since 2014, our study estimates that 2 million more U.S. workers started freelancing. To put it in context, the population of freelancers is greater than that of Ohio, Florida, and Pennsylvania combined. 
 
 And yet despite their numbers, there's almost no discussion of freelancers' interests in the political sphere. That is a lost opportunity for both parties. It is also a major oversight of one of the biggest constituencies driving the U.S. workforce and economy. 
 
 We believe it's time for America to take seriously one of its largest sources of entrepreneurial creativity -- freelancers -- and to start an open, public discussion about this growing workforce. 
 
 Freelancers comprise many different types and work across all industries, from graphic designers and web developers to nannies, lawyers and opera singers. They include men and women and represent a diversity of ethnic and racial backgrounds. They live all over the country, not just in major cities. By putting together diverse income streams to create a life that gives them flexibility, creativity, and control, freelancers are pioneering a new way of working. 
 
 In many ways, freelancing represents the future of work -- and it's a future that many people welcome. We found that 13.5 million people are already "moonlighting" as freelancers in addition to their day jobs, and that 37 percent of these have considered quitting their job to freelance full-time. That would add millions more full-time freelancers to our workforce. 
 
 Freelancing is increasingly a choice people are making because it offers them a better lifestyle, more income, and, in many cases, both. The fact is, the job market is changing, and traditional jobs often provide less security, fewer benefits, and fewer rewards than ever before. In that context, freelancing offers a measure of control over your own fate. So it's no surprise that 63 percent of independent workers started freelancing by choice -- up 10 percentage points (from 53 percent) since 2014, and 79 percent say that freelancing is better than working in a traditional job. 
 
 You'd think America's 55 million freelancers, many of whom are business owners themselves, would be a major subject for political discussion in the same way that our 28 million small businesses are. But nothing could be further from the truth. Freelancers get little attention from politicians -- about 70 percent said they've heard little to no discussion about freelancing by the candidates for president. Specifically, freelancers are concerned about issues such as income predictability, debt, and access to credit and other resources. The government does not track data on freelancers well and few policymakers are focused on this growing class of workers and their needs. 
 
 Yet most freelancers believe this country needs to talk more about empowering the freelance segment of the workforce--and they're willing to change their votes to support candidates who do. Indeed, 85 percent of freelancers say they are likely to vote in this year's election for president, and their loyalties are still up for grabs: 45 percent support Clinton, 33 percent support Trump, and 21 percent are undecided or voting Libertarian; most say they would consider changing their votes to support a candidate who address their needs. In other words, there are 47 million potential voters which could be won, or lost, by a candidate choosing to interact on issues and ideas that matter to freelancers. In a time of ever-smaller margins of victory in electoral politics, freelancers are a constituency worth engaging. The politicians that learn to speak their language could ride their support to victory. 
 
 In short, freelancers are a huge, trillion-dollar economic resource for the U.S., contributing far more than people realize and pursuing careers that they and others increasingly see as more desirable than working for someone else. In a labor market with fewer guarantees than ever before, freelancers offer a glimpse of the future of work. 
 
 Yet as a political constituency, freelancers are neglected, and their role in pushing our economy forward is rarely discussed. It's time for that to change. 
 
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 A large-scale survey of the freelance economy shows that the number of freelance workers is growing quickly, with the number of U.S. freelancers hitting 55 million this year, up from 53 million in 2014 and 53.7 million last year. 
 
 Freelancers now make up 35% of U.S. workers and collectively earned $1 trillion in the past year, according to the "Freelancing in America: 2016" survey released this morning by the Freelancers Union, based in New York City, and the giant freelancing platform Upwork, headquartered in Silicon Valley. The Freelancers Union represents 300,000 members. 
 
 The news is significant at a time when both the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates have made the need for more traditional full-time jobs a centerpiece of their campaign. In today's economy, more people are creating their own jobs than ever before. Whether they have done so voluntarily or because they were forced into it by lack of a traditional job, many of these taxpayers do not have access to the traditional social safety net, such as unemployment insurance, or access to health care they can afford. 
 
 Although candidates have paid only scant attention to freelancers thus far, the survey found that many independent workers would respond to someone who acknowledged their needs. Sixty-eight percent of voting freelancers said they would be more likely to support a candidate who says they are explicitly representing freelancers' interests. Portable benefits also appealed to the freelancers, with 67% saying they would support having access to health and retirement benefits regardless of their employment status. And 68% said freelancers should have the same access to credit as other workers, perhaps reflecting the difficulty even high-earning freelancers have in obtaining a mortgage. 
 
 These finding are important, given that 85% of the freelancers said they planned to vote in the upcoming general election in November. According to the research, freelancers are more likely to believe businesses support their interests than government does. 
 
 "Freelancers are one-third of the workforce," says Freelancers Union Founder and Executive Director Sara Horowitz. "There has been a period when people went from unionized, well paying jobs with benefits. They are expressing a lot of their pain points in this election. Episodic income is a huge pain point." 
 
 But the perils of unsteady income have not stalled the growth of freelancing--a trend driven in part by employers' desire to turn workers' pay from a fixed to a flexible cost. Many workers embrace freelancing because they like the benefits, such as flexible hours. 
 
 A key factor driving the recent uptick in the number of freelancers is young adults' affinity for independent work, according Stephane Kasriel, CEO of Upwork. "The younger part of the workforce is much more likely to be freelancing than the older part," notes Kasriel. Among workers ages 18-24, 47% are freelancing either part-time or full-time, versus 28% of Baby Boomers, the survey found. 
 
 Many freelancers like the lifestyle. The average full-time freelancer in the survey works 36 hours a week, less than the standard 40-hour workweek--and most say they have the right amount of work. "People want a 'freelance 360-degree' life where they can decide what they want to do and how much they want to work," says Horowitz. "They want four hours a week back for themselves." 
 
 Technology, such as the proliferating number of freelance platforms and apps like Uber, is also improving access to freelance gigs. Among respondents, 73% said technology has made finding freelance work easier. Sixty-six percent said the amount of freelance work they had found online increased since last year. 
 
 Freelancers are also earning more, the survey found. Among respondents, 46% raised rates in the past year. Among those who quit a traditional job to freelance, more than half are earning more than they did getting a steady paycheck. And, perhaps reflecting their improved financial situations, 53% of freelancers believe that having a diverse portfolio of clients is more economically secure than having one employer. 
 
 In the research, more than 6,000 U.S. working adults over the age of 18 were surveyed online by independent research firm Edelman Intelligence between July 29 --- August 24, 2016. Among them, 2,049 were freelancers and 3,953 were non-freelancers. The survey defined freelancers as individuals who have engaged in supplemental, temporary, project- or contract-based work within the past 12 months. 
 
 Most freelancers surveyed were not forced into it by circumstance. Among respondents, 63% said they were freelancing voluntarily, up from 53% in 2014. "That is a pretty massive shift in two years," says Kasriel. 
 
 The main motivator for full-time freelancers is to be their own boss, the survey found. For part-time freelancers, it is to make additional income. Those surveyed tend to be happy with their work, with 79% saying freelancing is better than a traditional job. 
 
 When asked how much an employer would have to pay them to take a traditional job, half of the freelancers said no amount of money would lure them. 
 
 Still, there is substantial work to be done to make the freelance lifestyle sustainable for more people. "What policymakers need to understand is the income predictability is the wedge issue," Horowitz says. 
 
 The survey found that among part-time freelancers, 57% said that what is preventing them from quitting their job to freelance exclusively is worries about an unsteady income. Many freelancers insulate themselves against fluctuations in their pay by saving more money in case of dry spells than non-freelancers and limiting what they spend in general, according to the survey. However, many surveys have showed that saving is difficult for many Americans, particularly those with moderate incomes--which could leave them in a difficult situation if suddenly thrust into contract work or freelancing. 
 
 To address the challenge of unpredictable income, the Freelancers Union is looking into new kinds of unemployment insurance and ways to address the lack of access to affordable healthcare that has continued to plague independent workers, despite the Affordable Care Act. The research found that 20% of full-time freelancers still don't have health insurance. 
 
 Horowitz says more laws are also needed to ensure freelancers get paid. The Freelancers Union is promoting the Freelance Isn't Free Act in New York City, which would crack down on people who hire freelancers but don't pay them for their work, and is encouraging other cities to consider similar laws. "Cities are starting to take the lead over the federal government," says Horowitz.
– America's freelancers work more hours than the average American and are earning more money than ever while doing it, Yahoo reports. The average American workweek in September was 34.4 hours—an increase of 0.1 hour that one analyst says is a good sign for the economy. But a report by Upwork and the Freelancers Union released this week found that America's freelancers work an average of 36 hours per week. There are 55 million self-identified freelancers in the US—an increase of 2 million in just two years—representing 35% of the American workforce. And that's not counting the 13.5 million people who do part-time freelance work in addition to their full-time jobs, according to Huffington Post. Forbes reports freelancers earned $1 trillion total in the past year. So despite the increasing importance of freelancers to the economy, why do politicians from both parties continue to focus on traditional full-time employment? "As a political constituency, freelancers are neglected, and their role in pushing our economy forward is rarely discussed," the heads of the Freelancers Union and Upwork write for HuffPo. "It’s time for that to change." While freelancers may have greeter flexibility in their work—and 54% say they make more money freelancing than they did working a traditional job—they also lack many of the benefits given to full-time workers, including affordable health insurance. The study found 68% of voting freelancers would be more likely to support a candidate if they addressed the issues facing freelancers.