Florida restaurateur warns Biden’s $ 15 minimum wage plan ‘will destroy the hospitality industry’



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Joe Biden’s plan to raise the federal minimum wage to $ 15 an hour as part of his nearly $ 2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package would cripple the already struggling hotel industry, a Florida restaurateur at “The Story”.

John Horne, owner of Anna Maria’s Oyster Bars, a small restaurant group in the Bradenton area, said his waiters were already making nearly $ 30 an hour from a combination of salary credits and tip.

“I mean obviously bringing money to people helps us, but this minimum wage [hike] is absolutely going to destroy the hospitality industry in Florida and across the country, ”Horne told host Martha MacCallum.

“They are trying to paint the whole nation with a large brush,” he added. “They’re trying to say what’s good in Alexandria, Virginia is good in Alexandria, Tennessee. We can’t do this.

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Horne added that if the minimum wage increase becomes law, and “if we raise everyone to $ 15 and don’t take tips into consideration, we’re basically going to give everyone a $ 50 pay cut. % … because they will take it from $ 30 an hour to $ 15 an hour. “

Using one of his locations as an example, Horne predicted that a minimum wage of $ 15 on top of tip credits would increase his annual payroll by $ 500,000 or 17% of his annual sales, from the income he does not have to spare.

“I’m going to have to raise the prices. This will take our seniors away from Florida,” he explained. “They’re not getting the increases. My dad’s Social Security went up 1.9%. He got a $ 34 a month increase this year. That won’t help.”

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Additionally, Horne said, Biden also doesn’t take into account high school students working part-time or starting their first job.

“If we don’t factor in teenage wages, training wages and tip credit, we’re just going to shoot ourselves in the foot. So we have to take our time with that,” he said. “I already pay my kitchen staff over $ 15 an hour now because that’s what my market supports. So they’re already taking care of themselves.”

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