McDonald's Katherine franchisee Vicki-Leigh Lettice confirmed the Katherine branch of the fast food branch currently has 70 vacancies.

"McDonald's is recruiting 70 full-time, part-time, and casual positions at our restaurant in Katherine," she said.

"There are a variety of positions available in our crew, management, barista and maintenance teams.

"We are proud to employ people of all ages and experience levels, offering a supportive working environment, outstanding training and development opportunities and the flexibility to suit all circumstances.

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"We look forward to providing essential jobs to members of the local Katherine community."

A McDonald's spokeswoman said the branch operates drive-thru only from Monday to Friday, only opening the restaurant for dining in on weekends.

Katherine's Woolworths store has also experienced staff shortages, with reports of lines out the front door to manage queues inside.

"As a result of recent COVID-19 lockdowns and team shortages, our Katherine store is experiencing some temporary workforce challenges," a Woolworths spokesperson said.

"We would like to thank our store team members for their hard work and commitment during this challenging period.

"We look forward to continuing to serve the Katherine community and thank everyone for their understanding as we work through this together."

Katherine Mayor Lis Clark said there was staff shortages "in every area" in Katherine, which could be linked to a shortage in housing.

"We have a staff shortage and...it could be related to the housing shortage," she said.

"Hospitality, chefs, all these sorts of people.

"I had a lady saying the other day she couldn't even get a dental assistant."

A recent report found rental prices in Katherine had risen by more than four per cent, with availability at an all time low.

Shelter NT CEO Peter McMillan said the housing shortages in Katherine had major ramifications.

"Anecdotally it's quite a common story for people moving to Katherine with their family for work that there just aren't rentals available," he said.

"I have heard a number of accounts of people staying in motels for up to four months before finding a place, never mind a place that's affordable."

"Twelve months ago there was essentially no places for rent that were affordable for low to mid-income earners. Twelve months on it's even more dire."

Urban Housing Minister Kate Worden said the NT Government is tackling Katherine's housing shortage through its Community Housing Growth Strategy.

"This Strategy will include a pipeline of strategic housing management, potential land packages and other redevelopment opportunities that aim to incentivise and attract non-government investment in new social and affordable housing supply," she said.

"As part of this pipeline, opportunities to transfer public housing assets to the community housing sector for management or redevelopment across key locations of the Northern Territory, including Katherine, will be considered."

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