Wage Garnishment

Sometimes, when a person has a significant debt to pay off, the court can order wage garnishment as a method of ensuring that the employee can pay back the debt. Wage garnishment consists of an employer withholding some of an employee’s paycheck so that they are forced to put some of their income toward the repayment of debt. Some people, if they simply receive all of their paycheck and are then required to use self-discipline to pay off the debt, will not put much money toward payment.

Title III of the Consumer Credit Protection Act deals with these issues and specifically protects employees from wage garnishment discrimination. It limits the amount that an employer can take out of the employee’s paycheck and it also keeps the employer from discriminating against the employee for having one debt that requires wage garnishment.

The amount the employer can take out of the paycheck is either no more than 25% of the disposable income, or the amount greater than 30 times the federal minimum wage. This allows for a significant payment to be made to the debt each paycheck, but also allows the employee to continue to subsist.

It is important to note that Title III does not protect employees from discharge or punitive action on the part of their employer if they are garnishing wages for more than one debt. It is only a single debt that offers protection under Title III.

Contact Us

If you have been incorrectly fired because of wage garnishment, or if you have any questions about the complex nature of these regulations, contact the Austin employment lawyer of The Melton Law Firm by calling (512) 330-0017.