Tuesday, April 2, 2013

3.2 Million Jobs at Risk: Another Painful Side Effect of ObamaCare

More than One Third of Franchise Jobs in Every State are at Risk 
House Committee on Ways and Means

While the White House is celebrating the third anniversary of their health care law, the jobs of millions of American workers across the country are at risk because of ObamaCare. According to a state-by-state breakdown of data from a Hudson Institute study, ObamaCare’s employer mandate jeopardizes the jobs of up to 3.2 million full-time employees in the franchise industry. The data, released today by the International Franchise Association (IFA), reveals that the potential for job loss is especially high in the hospitality, restaurant and leisure industries – the same industries where many secure entry-level jobs and learn skills that allow them to move to higher-skilled work. With over one-third of franchise employees in every state at risk, over 300,000 in California, almost 200,000 jobs in Florida and over 110,000 jobs in Pennsylvania, no one is safe from the pain of job loss under ObamaCare.

Highlights from testimony summarizing the study's findings:
  • This [employer mandate] penalty raises significantly the cost of employing full-time workers, especially low- skill workers, because the penalty is a higher proportion of their compensation than for high-skill workers, and employers cannot take the penalty out of employee compensation packages.
  • Industries that have traditionally offered the greatest opportunities to entry-level workers – leisure and hospitality, restaurant – will be particularly hard-hit by the new law. The franchise industry has offered an entry point to low-skill workers, who have some of the highest unemployment rates in America.
  • In addition to hiring more part-time workers, firms will have an added incentive to become more automated, or machinery-intensive and employ fewer workers.
State
Employed In
Franchised Businesses
Potential Jobs At Risk Due to ACA
California
925,700
324,604
Texas
727,500
255,104
Florida
563,400
197,561
Illinois
412,800
144,752
Ohio
382,000
133,951
New York
349,600
122,590
Georgia
338,400
118,663
Pennsylvania
318,600
111,720
North Carolina
296,100
103,830
Virginia
287,000
100,639
Michigan
260,600
91,381
Tennessee
223,900
78,512
Missouri
220,700
77,390
Indiana
216,000
75,742
New Jersey
215,400
75,532
Arizona
192,700
67,572
Minnesota
190,900
66,941
Wisconsin
177,100
62,102
Washington
164,700
57,753
Colorado
163,800
57,438
Maryland
161,200
56,526
Kentucky
160,700
56,351
Alabama
155,800
54,633
Massachusetts
149,600
52,458
Louisiana
147,000
51,547
South Carolina
145,000
50,845
Oklahoma
136,500
47,865
Iowa
117,000
41,027
Oregon
114,200
40,045
Kansas
112,700
39,519
Mississippi
108,100
37,906
Connecticut
107,300
37,626
Nevada
102,400
35,907
Arkansas
96,700
33,909
Utah
84,200
29,525
Nebraska
74,900
26,264
New Mexico
64,100
22,477
West Virginia
62,200
21,811
Idaho
48,600
17,042
Hawaii
46,800
16,411
New Hampshire
39,200
13,746
Maine
38,900
13,641
Montana
32,300
11,326
South Dakota
27,400
9,608
Delaware
26,900
9,433
Rhode Island
26,700
9,363
District of Columbia
26,000
9,117
North Dakota
23,600
8,276
Vermont
22,100
7,750
Alaska
20,300
7,118
Wyoming
20,100
7,048
U.S. Total
9,125,700
3,199,895