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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - With nearly 100 known job cuts in Yellowknife since Canada's economy took a dive last fall, the question on some peoples mind might be this: are people fleeing the city?

Matco supervisor Ben Artus hauls a box at a move on Gitzel Street last Friday. While people are moving out – and some because of layoffs – there are also people still moving into Yellowknife, said the company. - Lauren McKeon/NNSL photo Job losses since November 2008 Arctic Sunwest Charters: more than 20, exact numbers not released Summit Air: company would not release numbers De Beers Canada: 128 jobs cut at Snap Lake; 13 of those belonged to Yellowknifers; estimated another 90 Northern contracting jobs cut. Arslanian Cutting and Polishing Works: 13 Discovery Air: 6 Laurelton Diamonds: 25

Leon Johnson doesn't think so.

Johnson is the corporate and international sales manager for Matco Transportation Systems in Yellowknife.

Of the four major moving companies in Canada - United Van Lines, North American Van Lines, Atlas Van Lines and Allied Van Lines - Matco, which is a member of United, is the only one with a physical office in the city.

Matco manages the moving sales for the other three, essentially making Johnson the go-to guy for anybody wanting to know who is treading south across the territory's border.

"It's fairly even flow. It's not a big mass exodus or an influx out," said Johnson.

The downturn, "hasn't affected our business - yet," he added.

Last week, Johnson and Matco helped move new people into the city to work for Northwestel and BHP Billiton, just as the company moved someone else back south after his contract expired - and, presumably, was not renewed.

"We got people going in and we got people going out. We're finding a nice little balance," he said.

"It's nice to see even though in light of the economic downturn people are still coming up to Yellowknife. That's fairly positive," he added.

While Johnson said activity levels for the moving companies are about the same as in 2008 and 2007, he added he is seeing people move for different reasons.

"With the economy this year on a bit of a downturn, the reason (for moving) seems to be more maybe the odd layoff or a different job (offer)," he said.

But many who were laid off may not be able to hire a professional moving company like Matco, added Johnson.

He suggested with the economic downturn some people might be moving on their own, using their own muscles and a rented U-Haul.

The NWT Bureau of Statistics will release population estimates and migration statistics for the final quarter of 2008 this month, said Vishni Peeris, territorial statistician with the bureau.

But such numbers won't hit the past three months during which the spate of job cuts began to pile up.

And even if they did, it may be hard to pinpoint the reasons for migration, especially with Yellowknife's fairly transient population. For instance, between July 1 and Oct. 1, 2008, the most recent period available for statistics, 257 people migrated out of the territory. Between Oct. 1, 2007 and Oct. 1, 2008 more than 650 people moved out of the territory.

Reasons for migration really do depend on the community and the economic situation of the people living there, said Peeris.

And in the North, the economic situation is not so different from that of our southern counterparts.