What is Wage Garnishment?
Wage Garnishment is a court-ordered repayment of an individual’s debt through their employer. Under federal law, an employer must deduct a portion of an individual’s pay in order to repay a creditor. The creditor must first obtain a court order to garnish that portion of the individual’s earnings.

How is Wage Garnishment legal?
This law is administered by the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor's Employment Standards Administration.

Title III of the Consumer Credit Protection Act limits the amount of an employee's earnings which may be garnished and protects an employee from being fired if pay is garnished for one debt.

Which earnings can be garnished?
Under the law, any wage can be garnished, including hourly rates, salary rates, commission payments, bonuses, and retirement and pension incomes. Tips are not considered wages that can be garnished. The law applies in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and all U.S. territories and possessions.

What is the maximum amount that can be garnished?
The amount of the garnishment, according to the law, either cannot exceed 25% of an individual’s disposable earnings, which is a worker’s take-home pay after federal, state, and local taxes, or the amount by which disposable earnings are greater than 30 times the federal minimum hourly wage, $5.15, which is $154.50. The creditor is allowed to garnish the lesser of the two. If the person makes more than $154.50 during a pay period, 25% can be garnished. Specific restrictions apply to court orders for child support or alimony. The garnishment law allows up to 50 percent of a worker’s disposable earnings to be garnished if the worker is supporting another spouse or child, and up to 60 percent for a worker who is not. An additional 5 percent may be garnished for support payments more than 12 weeks in arrears.

What happens when Title III has been violated?
If an individual’s rights under Title III have been violated by an employer, the individual must legally be reinstated at work and be paid back wages of the same amount that was wrongfully taken. If the employer does not abide by the laws, the individual may contact the Department of Labor, who will investigate the individual’s case.

Are there any exceptions to the law?
The wage garnishment law specifies that garnishment restrictions do not apply to bankruptcy court orders and debts due for federal or state taxes. If a state wage garnishment law differs from the federal law, the law resulting in the smaller garnishment must be observed.

Where can I get more information?
For more information about the federal wage garnishment laws, you may contact the nearest office of the Wage and Hour Division, found under U.S. Government, Department of Labor, and Employment Standards Administration.

OR CALL US 610-437-2960 OR 1-877-255-8910.