More than 70 per cent of Australians want action on low wage growth according to a new poll conducted for the ACTU immediately prior to the federal budget.

It found that 80 per cent of working Australians haven’t received a pay rise that has kept pace with the rising cost of living in the last 12 months.

More than half of working people had not had a pay rise at all, while a further 28.6 per cent had received an increase so small it did not cover the expanding cost of essential items.

Three in four voters said that low wage growth was either the top issue or an important issue when they considered how they would vote in the federal election.

Wages have been stalled in real terms for more than six years, with real median wage growth close to zero, says the ACTU, despite the consistently optimistic forecasts by the Morrison government for higher wage growth.

More than six in 10 people polled approved of the ALP’s proposal to increase the minimum wage to a living wage.