Study: 1,200 D.C. jobs could be lost by 2020 because of $15 minimum wage

The minimum wage could have devastating consequences for thousands of workers in the District of Columbia if the jurisdiction caves into the Fight for $15 demands.

According to the District of Columbia’s Office of Revenue Analysis report published on Thursday, a minimum wage hike to $15 could cost 1,200 jobs by the year 2020. The study added that as many as 2,000 jobs could be lost by 2026 because of the increased minimum wage.

Researchers noted that as many as 150,000 workers could be impacted by the minimum wage.

“This study proves what we’ve known all along: this dramatic D.C. wage hike will hurt the most vulnerable in the District, costing them jobs and important economic opportunities,” Jeremy Adler, Communications Director for America Rising Squared, a conservative policy organization, told the Daily Caller. “D.C. must focus on creating more good-paying jobs for workers that need them the most and it’s clear an artificial minimum wage increase is the wrong approach to achieving this goal.”

With the “Fair Shot Minimum Wage Amendment Act,” the minimum wage will increase to $15 by 2020 with incremental increases every year. Today’s minimum wage presently stands at $11.50.

Jurisdictions that have implemented a $15 minimum wage have already seen a great number of jobs lost (SEE: Report: Seattle restaurant industry suffers worst job loss since economic collapse). Although the minimum wage has been incrementally incorporated, businesses are seeing the writing on the wall and are resorting to jobs cuts or automation.