Balls said the situation amounts to a "black Wednesday" for families on the first day of the new tax year due to a child benefit freeze, tax credit changes and the way benefits are linked to inflation.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he said the changes will hit poorest families the hardest.
"If we're all in this together, why is it that women rather than men; families with children; and part-time working women losing their childcare support are being hit the hardest?," he said.
Alison Garnham, chief executive of Child Poverty Action Group, said children born from today will suffer as a result of less money for families.
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