Frustration Heightens: WBHO Workers Stage Renewed Protest over Unpaid Benefits in Grand Bassa

Monrovia, Liberia: Tensions continue to mount in Grand Bassa County as aggrieved current and former employees of Wilson Bayly Holmes Ovcon (WBHO) staged a peaceful protest on June 9, 2025, demanding the company pay long-overdue labor benefits owed for more than two years.

The demonstration, held at the Administrative Building in Buchanan, saw protestors carrying placards and chanting slogans as they called out what they described as persistent labor exploitation and unfair treatment under the company’s operations.

According to the group, all attempts to resolve the matter through official channels have been met with silence. They claim that both WBHO management and the Labor Commissioner have failed to respond meaningfully to their repeated complaints over the years.

Workers say they have exhausted every possible means of dialogue and mediation, and the company’s refusal to engage has left them with no choice but to take to the streets. For many, the prolonged delay in receiving their benefits has created serious financial and emotional hardship.

This is not the first time the disgruntled workers have taken action. A similar protest turned tense on May 15, 2025, when a group of former employees seized WBHO’s human resources officer during a heated standoff. The officer was later released without harm, but the incident intensified public awareness of the ongoing labor crisis.

The protest leader, Windell P. Verider, who again led the June 9 protest, described the company’s treatment as inhumane and unacceptable. He said the workers remain firmly committed to nonviolent advocacy but will not back down until justice is served.

Verider emphasized that the protests are not politically motivated but stem from deep-rooted frustration after years of service without proper compensation. He stressed that the group will continue to seek peaceful legal redress through all available avenues.

Despite the growing pressure, WBHO has yet to issue any public statement addressing the protests or outlining any plan to resolve the workers’ grievances. The company’s silence is further fueling anger and disappointment among those affected.

With no clear resolution in sight, the labor dispute is fast becoming a flashpoint for broader discussions about workers' rights, corporate accountability, and the role of regulatory institutions in protecting Liberian employees under concession agreements.