In a Tuesday interview on Fox Business Network's'Mornings with Maria', former McDonald's CEO Ed Rensi warned that an increased minimum wage would foment massive job loss thanks to the relatively low cost of replacing workers with intelligent machines. "It's cheaper to buy a 35,000 robotic arm than it is to hire an employee who's inefficient making 15 an hour bagging French fries – it's nonsense and it's very destructive and it's inflationary and it's going to cause a job loss across this country like you're not going to believe," Rensi said. Even without a 15 per hour law, Rensi said that he thinks that franchising-model businesses are moving toward automation, since they are dependent upon low-skill workers to grow. It's going to happen whether you like it or not. And the more you push this, it's going to happen faster," the former McDonald's chief said.

As fast-food workers across the country vie for 15 per hour wages, many business owners have already begun to take humans out of the picture. "I was at the National Restaurant Show yesterday and if you look at the robotic devices that are coming into the restaurant industry -- it's cheaper to buy a 35,000 robotic arm than it is to hire an employee who's inefficient making 15 an hour bagging French fries -- it's nonsense and it's very destructive and it's inflationary and it's going to cause a job loss across this country like you're not going to believe," said former McDonald's (MCD) USA CEO Ed Rensi during an interview on the FOX Business Network's Mornings with Maria. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1.3 million people earned the current minimum wage of 7.25 per hour with about 1.7 million having wages below the federal minimum in 2014. These three million workers combined made up 3.9 percent of all hourly paid workers. "It's not just going to be in the fast food business. Franchising is the best business model in the United States. It's dependent on people that have low job skills that have to grow. Well if you can't get people a reasonable wage, you're going to get machines to do the work. It's going to happen whether you like it or not. And the more you push this it's going to happen faster," Rensi added.