Stormont ministers are asking the UK Treasury to extend the coronavirus job retention scheme to substitute teachers.
Millions of pounds are being sought to pay supply staff who usually work day-to-day.
The school lockdown is now in its seventh week and many teachers have not received a single penny since classes ended.
Only those longer-term teachers on fixed contracts including maternity cover have been paid.
The Department of Education has bid for £12 million for a hardship fund for `casual' subs.
The Department of Finance suggested that the money would have to come from education's already overstretched budget, however.
It has now emerged that the education and finance ministers have written to the Treasury seeking assistance.
The coronavirus job retention scheme is designed to support employers whose operations have been severely affected by Covid-19.
Employers can claim for 80 per cent of furloughed employees' usual monthly wage costs.
The Department of Education told The Irish News that decisions on Covid-19-related funding would be taken by the Executive who considered bids from all departments in light of competing priorities and the level of additional funding available.
"The Department of Education budget has been extremely challenging in recent years, with insufficient funding received to address all of the inescapable pressures across the education sector," a spokeswoman said.
"Substitute teachers here are a unique group of staff, and the education sector depends on these individuals to be available in normal circumstances to cover for absences of permanent teachers.
"The finance and education ministers have written to the chief secretary to the Treasury requesting access to the coronavirus job retention scheme for substitute teachers here."
Sinn Féin MLA Karen Mullan, who is deputy chair of the assembly education committee, said subs needed urgent support.
"It is now six weeks since schools were closed, that is six weeks that our day-to-day substitute teachers have been without the ability to earn an income," she said.
"Substitute teachers play a pivotal role in the day-to-day running of schools across the north and we firmly believe they should be protected throughout this crisis. These workers have had their income disappear but their bills keep coming."
SDLP MLA Daniel McCrossan said any further delay was "unacceptable".
"Supply teachers have now waited weeks in the hope that their livelihoods can be secured - like other workers out there. These delays have added huge amounts of stress and uncertainty," he said.
"The department needs to secure funding and announce the scheme immediately. Otherwise there will be a sizeable number of supply teachers driven into poverty."
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IN addition to the £12m for casual subs, the following bids have been submitted by the Department of Education for Covid-19 funding:
Meals Provision £27.9m
Childcare £24.9m
Income support scheme for non teaching staff £2m
Education Authority Pressures £10.4m
Voluntary Grammar/GM Integrated canteens £4.1m
Preparatory Schools £2.3m
Boarding Schools £1.8m
CCEA exams board £1.6m
Pathway Fund £725k
For background
Please also see table below of Covid-19 funding already received by DE
DE
Direct payment to families - free school meals
18.9
Extension of Free School Meals to Youth
0.4
Emergency Childcare Provisions
12.0
Total DE
31.3
