Northern Territory teachers are being offered $500 to stay local this Easter.

The NT Government’s Remote Community Schools package gives teachers a $500 retention payment, an extra day of annual leave, a credit for flight expenses and wellness sessions, if they stay in their communities over the Easter break.

It is intended to reduce movement in and out of remote communities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We have about 1,000 remote staff that will be eligible for this remote package,” NT Education Minister Selena Uibo said.

“This money is being funded internally by the Department - we've reprioritised some of our funding.”

The scheme is voluntary, but those who do choose to leave will need to quarantine before returning to their community, delaying their return to work for term 2.

The 14-day quarantine period is taken out of teachers’ annual leave or leave without pay.

The President of the Australian Education Union NT, Jarvis Ryan, welcomed the incentives to stay.

“There is a real concern that if we don't look after our remote workforce, some of those people may leave the Territory,” he said.

“It is a big ask of people, and I think this little package we've seen is the first step in acknowledging that there's tough times.”

However, due to the increased cost of living in remote areas, Mr Ryan says $500 may not be enough.

“We've already raised issues about wanting to look at further compensation down the line,” he said.

“One proposal is to bring forward the end of the school year in remote areas by one week, in recognition of the fact that these teachers are effectively not getting their week's holiday.”

Ms Uibo said schools will open in term 2, as the NT has seen a lower number of COVID-19 cases compared to other jurisdictions.

The Territory is yet to see any cases of community transmission of COVID-19, with all cases so far having come from returned travellers.