Here's what your employer can (and can't) do when your wages are garnished

MoneyWatch: Managing Your Money Here's what your employer can (and can't) do when your wages are garnished We may receive commissions from some links to products on this page. Promotions are subject to availability and retailer terms. .chip { background-image: url('/fly/bundles/cbsnewscore/images/chip-bgd/chip-bgd-moneywatch.jpg'); } By Angelica Leicht Angelica Leicht Senior Editor, Managing Your Money Angelica Leicht is the senior editor for the Managing Your Money section for CBSNews.com, where she writes and edits articles on a range of personal finance topics. Angelica previously held editing roles at The Simple Dollar, Interest, HousingWire and other financial publications. Read Full Bio Angelica Leicht June 4, 2026 / 11:51 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google A garnishment order impacts your pay, but it doesn't hand your employer discretion over your paycheck. Getty Images/iStockphoto There's a common assumption that wage garnishment is a standoff between you and the creditor you owe money to. What many borrowers don't realize, though, is that the moment a garnishment order takes effect, a third party gets pulled into the middle of it: your employer. When you're facing a garnishment, the company that signs your paycheck becomes the entity that's responsible for diverting a slice of it, meaning that your debt is no longer just your business. That tends to raise questions, particularly around how much control an employer suddenly has over your income and your standing at work.This type of situation is one that more people are finding themselves in right now. Not only is household debt at record highs, but delinquencies on credit cards and personal loans have been climbing as more borrowers fall behind. In turn, more creditors are focused on securing court judgments against seriously delinquent borrowers, the legal step that makes garnishment possible. And as those judgments pile up, so do the withholding orders flowing into payroll departments, and with them...