Budget to address wage wrangle: Frydenberg

Addressing wage-lag is shaping up as a key battleground with federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg vowing the government's budget will include measures to "drive wages higher".

Ahead of the April 2 budget Mr Frydenberg said there would be financial relief for voters without an increase in taxes, according to a report in The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

"What you need to do to drive higher wages is more trade, more infrastructure and keep the focus on lower taxes," he said.

Opposition leader Bill Shorten said the lack of income growth would be an important issue at the federal election.

"Wages have stagnated, that's why I think Labor's bigger, better tax cuts for working people will resonate well," he told reporters in Devonport.

Labor has been pushing for a "living wage" and called for a "substantial" increase in the minimum wage in a submission lodged with the Fair Work Commission's annual wage review.