January 9, 2009
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News: Ramifications of Garnishment Over CC Debt.
Yes, of course it's embarrassing to have your wages garnished for any reason, credit cards or otherwise. One would prefer that this be kept a secret. The problem is that, this secret is learned by your employer when it receives the court order to hold back some of your pay. Not only is this a nuisance for your employer but, your personal integrity as a responsible employee is also called into question here. "What kind of employee would irresponsibly run up credit card debt they couldn't repay?", the employer may ask itself. "How reliable will this employee be in the future?" will be the next question. Besides the negligent manor in which this credit card debt has been handled by you, your employer will naturally wonder "what other surprises are waiting in the wings?"
Don't expect to be forewarned. Although you are entitled to be notified that an injunction is being filed against you by the credit card lender or their contracted collection agents, you will not know how much your boss knows until things are set in stone. While the law prohibits an employer from ‘letting you go' over the first offence, multiple offences become legal grounds for job termination. The U.S. Department of Labor is in concurrence with this. Contempt for credit card debt can get you fired. As most of us already know, employers have much latitude when they want to get rid of an employee and have ways to terminate a person without giving the ‘real reason'.
Many employers aren't too concerned about one isolated credit card problem but, be careful that your employer will be ‘OK with it'. Don't expect, however, that your employer won't find out.
This isn't something that just happens over night and most credit card lenders don't ever like to take such strong measures. If the debt is large, then that may be a problem. The plaintiff (lender) is required to provide you with ‘lead time' before taking such strong legal actions and will likely, give you many warnings. But, once this legal instrument is in place, the consequences can be unstoppable and your own options suddenly become very limited. So, don't be one of those people who disregards unpleasant mail and believes, by not even opening the mail, that the problem will simply go away.