Federal $25 minimum wage mandate would destroy nearly 5M jobs, hit booming Sun Belt hardest: study

A federal $25 minimum wage mandate would destroy millions of jobs across the country and hit several of the Sun Belt states that have seen a significant influx of new residents in recent years, an economist warned in an interview with Fox News Digital .

The warnings come in response to recent legislative efforts from progressive members of Congress pushing to raise the federal minimum wage floor to $25 per hour by 2031 for large employers, while smaller businesses would reach that rate by 2038.

The proposal would also eliminate the federal tip credit, raising the direct cash wage requirement for tipped employees up to $25 per hour.

Rebekah Paxton, research director at the conservative Employment Policies Institute (EPI), warned that a $25 federal mandate would be a total "job killer." SANDERS-AOC BACKED PROGRESSIVE DEBUTS FEDERAL $25 MINIMUM WAGE BILL WITH COALITION OF 100+ ORGANIZATIONS The EPI projects that the policy would slash nearly 5 million jobs nationwide.

The group expects states including Texas , Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina and Florida to suffer the largest absolute job losses.

"Some of the top states that are going to be impacted by a $25 minimum wage include Texas, Pennsylvania, Florida, Ohio, Tennessee … These states have a massive workforce.

They also currently abide by the federal $7.25 minimum-wage rate, so a $25 minimum wage represents more than tripling the current minimum wage applicable in those states," Paxton told Fox News Digital.

Texas, North Carolina and Florida have been among the primary beneficiaries of post-COVID migration .

While major metropolitan areas, including Cook County, Illinois, and Los Angeles County, experienced population declines, U.S.

Census figures show the Southeast is booming, with many of the fastest-growing counties in the nation concentrated in Florida, Georgia and North Carolina.

"When you’re talking about doubling or tripling the minimum wage, you’re talking about doubling and tripling labor costs for businesses in those areas," Paxton added.

"There may be some businesses that try to absorb that through higher prices, but ultimately what we know from economists, business owners, and workers themselves is that it doesn't always work." "In a lot of ways, it means business owners are going to have to slash jobs and reduce the number of hours that folks are able to work," she explained.

"Our report shows that that’s going to cost almost five million jobs across the country.

LA HOTELS HIT BY LARGEST JOB LOSSES IN A DECADE AS 'OLYMPIC WAGE' MANDATES BITE, DATA SHOWS More than one-third of the projected job losses are concentrated in the restaurant and hospitality industry, including 1.2 million tipped workers , according to the report.