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Could salary packaging help you too?
As a healthcare worker, Prinisha Shyam is on the frontline of helping people who are going through difficult times.
Prinisha is a physiotherapist working with palliative care and cancer patients at Cabrini private hospital in Malvern, one of three hospitals operated by Cabrini Health, a Catholic not-for-profit private health service in Melbourne’s south-east.
“Working in oncology and palliative care in the hospital setting is so rewarding as I get to work closely with patients and their family to help achieve their goals and wishes,” Prinisha says.
In more recent times Prinisha, like many Australians, has been facing her own challenges, with the increasing prices of everyday essentials putting pressure on her family’s weekly budget. She is not alone.
A new report from Smart – Stretching your salary: How Australians are managing cost of living pressures1 – shows widespread concern about the cost of living among workers spanning sectors including health, disability and aged care, education and government. Mortgages, groceries and rent top the list of budget concerns.
Healthcare workers are among those doing it toughest, with almost four out of five hospital workers (78% of respondents) feeling moderately to extremely concerned about the cost of living. Female healthcare workers are more likely to be experiencing a high level of concern about cost of living (79% respondents) than men (74% of respondents).
However, for Prinisha, salary packaging many of her everyday living expenses is putting more money in her pocket each week and helping provide some much-needed cost-of-living relief.
She started salary packaging around 12 years ago, and hasn’t looked back.
“I’m saving around $5,000 each year by paying for a range of day-to-day living expenses like petrol and groceries with pre-tax dollars, using a prepaid card provided through Smart,” Prinisha says.
“I recently found out I could actually be saving even more by tapping into the meal and entertainment benefit as well, which I have since started utilising.”
Eligible workers in the not-for-profit sector can salary package up to $15,900 of living expenses per year*, taking this amount from their pre-tax income. In addition, they may be entitled to bundle up to $2,650 for meals, entertainment and holiday accommodation, so these expenses are also paid with pre-tax dollars.
Prinisha encouraged other frontline workers, particularly her colleagues in healthcare, to check what benefits they can access and make sure they are making the most of the potential savings.
“To anyone thinking about salary packaging, I would say it’s worth looking into because you could be much better off financially. In the end, it’s extra money in your pocket, and that’s something that we could all do with.”
Important information
This is general information only. Before entering into any salary packaging or novated leasing arrangement, you should consider your objectives, financial situation and needs, and obtain appropriate legal, tax, financial, or other professional advice based upon your own particular circumstances. This information is current as at September 2025.
1 The report is based on Smart’s Cost of Living survey, which includes responses from 1,379 customers surveyed from 28 April to 18 May 2025. The respondents included 269 hospital workers across Australia.
*Each Fringe Benefits Tax year, 1 April - 31 March, eligible healthcare workers can salary package up to $9,010 of living expenses, and eligible not-for profit, disability and aged care workers can salary package up to $15,900 of living expenses.