Senate Staffers demand salary adjustments as Senate budget continues to rise

Capitol Hill, Liberia: Employees of the Liberian Senate on Monday held a peaceful protest at the Capitol Building, demanding fair and standardized salaries comparable to those earned by public workers in other government ministries, agencies, and state-owned institutions. The protest was directed at the leadership of Senate Pro Tempore Nyonblee Karnga Lawrence.

The demonstrators, largely drawn from Central Administration and the personal support offices of senators, briefly entered several senatorial offices, interrupting routine legislative activities, including discussions on the national draft budget and scheduled public hearings.

As they chanted slogans such as “No Hearing, No Sitting,” the staffers expressed frustration over what they described as persistent wage imbalances within the National Legislature. They maintained that while salaries across the public sector have increased, Senate employees continue to earn wages that fail to keep pace with Liberia’s difficult economic conditions.

Addressing reporters at the Capitol, the group’s spokesperson, Roosevelt Tulay, said Senate staff have not received any salary adjustment since 2015, following the departure of the Armah Jallah–led Senate leadership.

Tulay explained that although the Senate’s budget has grown steadily over the years, workers’ pay has remained unchanged. He noted that the current approved Senate budget stands at US$14.6 million, while the proposed allocation for the 2026 fiscal year has increased to approximately US$16.4 million, representing a nearly US$1.8 million increase.

Despite this rise, Tulay said no portion of the additional funding has been directed toward staff salaries. According to him, only about US$2.7 million is earmarked for the wages of Central Administration staff, while personal and support staff of senators receive roughly US$1.55 million in the draft budget.

By comparison, Tulay disclosed that the combined salaries of the 30 senators exceed US$3 million, a figure he said is higher than the total compensation allocated to staff across several categories.

Addressing the protesters, Nimba County Senator Samuel Kogar and Margibi County Senator Nathaniel McGill stood with the Senate staffers and appealed for calm.

Senator Kogar speaking to Senate staffers and protesters. 

Senator Kogar said the concerns of the staffers have already been raised during a closed Senate meeting. However, he explained that he was not authorized at the moment to disclose the decisions reached by the Senate.

He assured the protesters that concrete steps have been taken and that the actions already initiated will be beneficial to Senate staffers.