Garnishment Against Wages

Employers occasionally receive court orders garnishing an employee’s paycheck, for example for payment of child support or other debts. The law places limits on the percentage of wages that can be withheld, depending on the type of garnishment. You can deduct $1.50 from the employee’s earnings for each payment made in accordance with any garnishment order.¹

The amount of wages exempt from garnishment is higher under the California standard than the federal standard.

A withholding order cannot exceed the lesser of:

• 20 percent of an individual's disposable earnings for the workweek; or