The issue of whether employees are able to establish the kind of work-life balance they want is becoming a more important one to consider for business bosses in Australia, it has been suggested.

Hamilton Calder from the committee for the economic development of Australia told Adelaide Now that employers are increasingly aiming to meet the demands from their staff for a better work-life balance.

The search for ways to help employees establish a better work-life balance could prompt a rise in home-based working down under and Mr Calder explained that such trends would offer social and economic benefits.

"It’s the ‘employers of choice’ who understand a lot of those issues – the environment, the social and the economic. They’re standing out to the labour force," he said.

"As a risk management, looking at your resource base, including labour as a resource, in order to attract and retain the best employees, it’s about being that employer of choice."

Figures from the Australian government show that the proportion of people working from home around the country rose by four per cent between 2000 and 2005, according to a recent report from Fairfax Digital.