Parent company of Hardee's and Carl's Jr., CKE Restaurants, started out in California about 70 years ago. Expansions and new restaurants haven't been going up in recent times though.

CKE Restaurants CEO Andy Puzder said there's little growth in the state, and it can be blamed on the recent minimum wage hikes.

"The minimum wage is so high, so it's harder to come up with profitable business models," Puzder said in an interview. 

California's minimum wage will rise to $9 per hour this July and $10 per hour by January 2016.

Puzder said in other states where the minimum wages have been increased, the franchisees are forced to close their locations after their leases expire.

If President Obama and lawmakers get their wishes, the federal minimum hourly rate per hour will go from the current level of $7.25 to $10.10. If this happens, Puzder predicted that fewer entry-level jobs will be created. He also said that CKE would have to create fewer positions.

A non-partisan study predicted mass job losses as well. The Congressional Budget Office study predicted the possibility of half a million job losses by late 2016 if the minimum wage is increased to $10.10.

"When the minimum wage increases, there are two things you can do," Pudzer said. "One is you can reduce the amount of labor that you use. Or you can increase your prices." 

But Pudzer said there's other rising expenses that occur for businesses. Food and fuel prices are increasing and so is health insurance. He said businesses can raise their prices only so high before customers will stop coming.

And with new Obamacare regulations, some franchisees are choosing to operate only one restaurant to avoid having to pay increased health care costs for having more than 50 employees.

"I actually have franchisees ... who've either gotten out of the business or refused to build two restaurants because with one restaurant you have less than 50 employees," he said. "With two, you have more than 50." 

Earlier this month, former CEO of McDonald's Ed Rensi said raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour (the wage protesters are asking for) would "absolutely kill jobs."