Do your supervisors understand why some employees may have their wages garnished? Do they know what to do when receiving a garnishment or family support order for an employee? Below is some information to convey to your supervisors.

• Garnishment is an order from a court or government agency.
• A garnishment order requires an employer to withhold a certain sum of money from an employee's weekly paycheck.
• The amount withheld is used to repay a debt the employee owes to a creditor -- a debt the employee failed to pay in the normal way. Debts may be for such things as consumer goods, taxes, student loans, or child support.

What should you do when you get a garnishment or family support order for an employee?

• First of all, never ignore any withholding order. Failure to answer and comply could result in contempt-of-court charges. In some cases, an employer that ignores an order could even be held liable for the amount owed.
• If you are unable to honor a garnishment order because of its priority or for any other reason, contact the court or government agency immediately and explain the circumstances.
• Don't be fooled by official-looking documents from collection agencies. These are not garnishment orders, and you have absolutely no legal obligation to respond to them. To get a garnishment order, a creditor or collection agency must go to a court, which issues the order.
• Wage garnishment and family support withholding, as we have said before, are complicated issues. If you're not sure how to handle an order, consult an attorney.
• Also, you are entitled to withhold a processing fee from the employee's wages. The amount of this fee is generally set by the garnishment order or by state law.

The above information comes from BLR's presentation "Wage Garnishment and Family Support Withholding: What Supervisors Need to Know." For more information on all the training courses BLR has to offer, go to our Employee and Manager Training page.