Parents separate.

Father is required to pay child support.

Court order is entered garnishing child support from Father’s wages from arms-length, third-party employer.

Father’s pay stubs reflect deduction of child support from Father’s pay before he receives it.

Yet Mother never receives child support.

How is that?

Well, there may be several possible explanations, of course.

But in at least some cases, it is possible that an employer fails to forward the garnished funds to the child support collection agency. Intentionally or otherwise.

One Wisconsin employer who is alleged to have engaged in a course of retaining wages ordered garnished for child support has been charged with contempt. And a bench warrant has been issued for his arrest.

Unfortunately, the parent whose wages have been garnished suffers a double “whammy” in such a situation.

First, they don’t get all of their wages.

Second, they don’t get credited for the child support garnished from their wages but not forwarded to the other parent.

Needless to say, income deduction should be terminated promptly in such a lose-lose scenario.

And the paying parent should probably look for a different job …

Read more in this Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article: Child support paid, not received.