Not all freelancers are 2x better than employees. Most contractors we get can't cut code if their life depended on it, and usually make a mess of things and then leave. I've really yet to meet a good contractor.

Also this isn't to say all employees are better than the contractors/freelancers we get as obviously there are some duds that get through. But in general that's how it is. Maybe it's because they better understand how things work than a newer person coming in does, and perhaps overtime the freelancer/contractor might do better...