A court-ordered legal claim against the salary or wages of a College staff member by a creditor for non-payment of a debt, and served by the constituted legal authority is called a "garnishment." Under the federal law regarding garnishment of salary (Title III of the Consumer Credit Protection Act), the College is obligated to recognize and execute the garnishment by withholding a portion of the staff member's salary for payment of the debt.
Staff members are expected to conduct their personal finances in such a manner as to make garnishments unnecessary. However, if garnishment occurs, the Consumer Credit Protection Act protects the staff member from disciplinary action by the employer for any single indebtedness and restricts the amount of garnishment to specific amounts. Should a staff member become involved in an unreasonable number of garnishments (defined by the federal act as more than one a year), however, the act gives the employer the right to take appropriate disciplinary action, and the College reserves the right to do so. Questions regarding garnishments should be directed to the Human Resources Department.
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