Garnishment of Wages

[mcassell]

My son is a bank teller. One month ago he cashed a check for $5,000 that was later determined to bad. The bank he works for has withheld his pay for the past month with no explanation. Is this legal? What are his options/path forward?

 

[cbg]

This is not a garnishment, which has a specific meaning and relates to court-ordered deductions which are then sent on to another party.

But to answer your question, no, they cannot withhold his entire check. Depending on what state he is in they may or may not be able to hold him financially responsible for the bad check and assuming that they can, again depending on state law they may or may not be able to take deductions from his pay. But they cannot withhold the entire check.

Unless he is in Florida (in which case his recourse is a civil suit), he can file a claim for unpaid wages with the state Department of Labor.

 

[mcassell]

Thanks for the quick response. He is in Tennessee and he has not pursued any legal recourse at this point. How would you recommend that we proceed?

 

[cbg]

I don't know off the top of my head if TN allows them to hold him financially responsible for the bad check. I'm pretty sure that they don't allow deductions unless he has agreed to them in writing. But let me clarify that and I'll get back to you.

 

[cbg]

Okay, I checked with my expert. According to her, TN does not have any prohibition against holding an employee responsible for shortages, damages etc. which would include bad checks. But, Tennessee law does not allow them to make deductions from his pay without his written authorization. They can sue him for it, but they can't take it out of his pay.

What I would recommend at this point is that, if he has not already done so, he politely ask the payroll department what has happened to his check. If they say it is because of the bad check, he might want to also politely point out that neither state nor Federal law permits them to hold his entire paycheck, and that state law prohibits taking any deductions without his written authorization. If that does not shake the check loose, then his options are to either file a claim with the state DOL (which is free) or to file a civil suit for the unpaid wages (which will incur some costs, even if only a filing fee). He might also consult with an attorney; most have free or low cost consultations.