Is wage garnish for CS a bad thing?

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-18-2004
Is wage garnish for CS a bad thing?
8
Mon, 05-09-2005 - 10:25am
I have filed to do a wage garnishment through the state and my ex keeps harrassing me saying "I am causing him all kinds of problems at work" "he could get fired and/or blackballed because of the back child support" (he owes me $12,000 in back support) and yesterday he said "you have put me in a bad position at work, I have been called into my bosses office twice now because of child support enforcement". He has been keeping up lately but his track record stinks and I feel it is just a matter of time until he stops paying again, so I wanted the law involved. Is this so bad? Do employers really look down on this or is he just worried that they might find out he's been a dead beat dad in the past? I figured this would be a simple payroll issue and his boss shouldn't even be involved
iVillage Member
Registered: 02-19-2004
Mon, 05-09-2005 - 10:34am

In most companies it is a simple payroll issue and it would not affect your job. IN NJ it's not an option, if cs is ordered through the courts it *must* go through wage garnishment (if the payor is employed).

Whatever problems your ex is having are of his own creation, if he knew having cs arrearages would affect his job then he should have stayed on top of it. More than likely he's blowing it out of proportion to make you feel guilty and shift the blame from himself. Either way, you did the right thing.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 07-14-2003
Mon, 05-09-2005 - 11:04am

Okay, that's just dumb. He owes the kids 12K already and garnishment is your fault? My guess is that he's been pulled into the HR office to sign papers or something and he's embarrassed. If his boss is indeed making an issue of a personal matter, that is not your fault either. He needs to take that up with another authority.

As for it's being a bad reflection on him, some states garnish automatically. Other times the parent chooses to pay the CS by payroll deduction so they don't have to worry about writing a check. His boss may be none the wiser. HR would know.

I'm not suggesting you do this - I don't know your ex - but I wonder how he would react if you offered to call his boss directly and put in a good word for him? And if you then asked why not? Again, I wouldn't suggest it, but it's an evil (and fun) little fantasy.

What you can do is tell him you'll talk about it when he calms down, stops blaming, and doesn't talk in circles. If it's more serious than that, infom him that you're reporting any and all harrassment to the phone company, and after (I think it's 3) annoyance calls they will send the info to the police.

Good luck, Bean.

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-02-2004
Mon, 05-09-2005 - 12:05pm

I agree with the other posters--your ex is just trying to get you to stop seeking garnishment so he can avoid the CS order or to harrass you out of control issues.

I just wanted to add that I am the person in my company who administers these garnishment orders. In Texas, we receive notification from the attorney general's office of the employee and $ amount. I make the edits into our payroll computer data, give the employee a copy of the garnishment notice and the date which withholding will be effective. We never even notify the employee's direct supervisor. Only the employee, I, as human resources administrator, and my boss ever even know the garnishment exists. It is the employer's obligation to keep this a highly confidential matter.

I suspect that either your ex is pulling your chain, so to speak, or his boss is a jerk, for giving him grief over a confidential matter. Employers have no choice but to comply with this order, it costs employer nothing, and can be paid over the internet in less than 2 minutes/pay period with an automatic bank draft. I know, I do this every week for several employees.

If you have had previous non-payment issues, garnishment is the only way to go, IMHO.

Good luck
Cupcake

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-11-2004
Mon, 05-09-2005 - 3:27pm

Listen,
I took my son's dad to court for CS as soon as I kicked him out. I have his check garnished. He was furious. But I had to ensure that my son was taken care of, because his dad is not reliable with many things. There employer has no reason to hound them about child support payments that's a bunch of bull. The lady on my job handles the child support payments at she does not hound the workers one bit about their child support payments, neither does the boss. It has nothing to do with them. All she does is deduct what amount is mandated by the courts. Dont let him run a guilt trip on you. My ex tried to make me feel guilty as well telling me i crippled him financially. What a joke. He has now got fired from his job so Im stuck with nothing now, but it will be in arrears. I'm keeping a close eye out because if he doesnt get his act together im going back to court, they will bring him back in for questioning. And even put out a warrant for his arrest. I hope it doesnt come to that. I just want so peace and the help I should be getting to raise our child.

Good luck

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Mon, 05-09-2005 - 10:49pm

Employers shouldn't know ANY of the "details" of what's past CS... and what's just normal, monthly CS.


Karen ~ wildlucky4me ~

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-13-2004
Mon, 05-09-2005 - 11:22pm
I agree with the other posters. Your ex is just trying to lay a guilt trip on you to get you to drop it. My ex tried the same thing by me telling me that he "wouldn't be able to come see the kids anymore, because of child support", and "thanks to child support, I'm broke and can't afford to pay my rent", blah, blah, blah. I didn't buy it for a minute and told him to knock it off, and to just deal with it. He even tried to tell me that if I dropped the child support order, he would sent it plus an extra $7/week. OOOOH, impressive! He also tried to tell me that they were taking out the full amount out of his check, but that child support enforcement was only sending me HALF and KEEPING the REST! I checked that one out, and of course it was a LIE!! He must think that I am pretty stupid. Well, I wised up the his mind games, and he is just going to have to lie in the messy bed that he has MADE for himself! Your ex has to also! You are not doing this to get EVEN with him, or to make his life hell, you are doing this to make your child's life BETTER!! Don't ever lose sight of that! Take care and good luck! And don't buy into his B.S!
Avatar for ajoschro
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Tue, 05-10-2005 - 5:37pm

I wanted to chime in here too...

I used to work for an attorney (collections) in the....Garnishment department. Now, every once in a while we would get a small employer calling, ticked that they had to learn how to process a garnishment, and insinuate that it would be easier to just let the person go. I was advised by my boss that it is illegal in KS to fire someone because of a garnishment. I can see how he could be getting harrassed by his boss if this was the situation, but it still is not your fault.

- Amy Jo

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 05-10-2005 - 5:50pm
I agree with the other posters.... with one exception. Depending on the paperwork sent to your x's employer/ the state you live in, the employer MAY have the information about the amount of cs or the fact that x is paying back cs, both of which would let the employer know that x is behind in cs. For some employers, this could be a matter that would affect their belief in an employee's suitability to the job. As we all know, employers can find other reasons to terminate employment without saying it is due to the cs garnishment. However, this is no reason not to do what you have done. What you have done IS absolutely the right thing!!

Steph


Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take- but by the moments that take our breath away. - Author unknown


The 2004 IDEA, special education law, goes into effect on July 1, 2005. Do you know how and if this will affect your child?

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