The Yoke of Advanced Capitalist Exploitation: A Case Study with Firestone

A view of the Firestone rubber factory in Harbel, Liberia, 2012 -- Bwoart, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

By Darius David Sumo

Exploitation has managed to penetrate its way from antiquity and is subtly taking grip of many societies. This nightmare continues to ravage the lives of those whose sole existence is heavily dependent on the sale of their labour. As a result of human labour being a commodity, capitalist institutions would prefer to use the labour of many workers to generate surplus—in layman’s terms, profits, with the aim of amassing massive wealth.

Excluding the primitive communal, the distinct stages societies have evolved through based on their economic structures and the resulting class relations— slavery, feudalism, and capitalism— there has been a relentless pursuit of mass wealth. That is why no matter how ghastly the conditions of the proletariat class are especially in a capitalist society, their miseries and sensitive plights are of less importance as they continue to be exploited. The exploitation of the proletariat class around the world may vary, but from a general standpoint, the objectives remain akin—the accumulation of unmatched wealth.

The Case with Firestone

The roots of Firestone Liberia can be traced as far back as 1926, following the climax of World War I, when the United States aimed to challenge the British rubber monopoly in the world, viewing rubber as an indispensable resource. Due to Liberia’s weak political structure, abundant vacant land, and being a direct product of US imperialism, the nation became a target for the American capitalist. This led to the securing of a ninety-nine years agreement with the Liberian government for vast rubber planting; making Firestone to be the oldest concession company operating in Liberia for almost a century.

A visit made by me and a few progressive comrades on August 2, 2025 to Harbel in Margibi County, where Firestone operates, revealed not only tears of despair but also a veil of sadness especially when workers explain their dreadful situations to us. Firestone has operated for almost a century, why hasn’t the narrative changed? Despite Liberia’s fertile soil being occupied by a multi-billion-dollar company, why is it the people are faced with

shattered dreams of prosperity and being caught in the grip of poverty? Why are people laboring under harsh conditions and in the cycle of toil?

To get a gist to these questions, it’s imperative for us to delve into the core of this text. Based on our interactions with workers, retirees of Firestone; and using the scope of Marx’s ideology—Marxism, Liberia grapples with wanton capitalistic exploitation. Firestone Liberia is not only an economic vulture of mass capital accumulation but also a direct dynamic of US imperialist expansion in Liberia. Since its formation, exploitation: the class struggle, the labour bureaucracy, surplus value extraction, etc. being manifested at Firestone haven’t changed. Rather they’ve shifted to their zenith.

Surplus Value:

The core of capitalist exploitation lies in extracting surplus value. Firestone workers add value to raw materials, creating rubber worth more than their wages, but Firestone management takes the surplus value, which Marx called the “exploitation of labor”. While in Harbel, one tapper showed documented evidence and further explained to us that the tappers wake up at 4 o’clock AM every morning to get prepared for tapping up to perhaps 750 trees daily on a normal tapping day. However, only half of the daily rate of $3.38 is paid if a tapper fails to complete the full daily quota. Faced with these onerous quotas, tappers have little choice but to allow family members to assist them in completing their quota or hire a sub-contractor.

The tappers work every day of the year including national holidays, with the exception of Christmas day, producing high volumes of latex. An average tapper’s monthly production can be valued at US/$2,296.80 on the ground in Liberia and US/$3,915.00 at world market prices while the tapper is paid US/$125. Out of the monthly wage of US/$125, he may have to pay one or two sub-contractors who helped him tap.

From an equitable standpoint, the more work done, the higher the wages should be given. In other words, the more work time invested, the more wages equivalent to the work time. In the case of Firestone, if calculated, do you know how much tappers are supposed to earn on a daily basis based on the labor time used? The company doesn’t care because its errand boys (government officials/ law makers) would always protect its interest. The company’s profitability, therefore, is directly dependent on its ability to minimize labor costs and maximize the output of its workers. The lower the wages and the higher the productivity, the greater the surplus value extracted and the higher the profits for Firestone.

The Labour bureaucracy or comprador bourgeoisie:

Marx saw bureaucracy as a tool of the ruling class, maintaining power and preserving the dominance of exploiters. Firestone strategically uses workers’ union leaders as labor bureaucrats. These individuals receive high wages to keep unions stagnated so that workers do not demand changes. These bureaucrats ensure that workers’ protests are unsuccessful. In a strong revelation, some workers highlighted that they were used as spies for Firestone management in their worker union, and they received special allowances for being informants and undermining their fellow workers’ planned action against the company.

It is glaring that those at the helm of power—senators, representatives, etc.—are merely errand boys for multi-billion-dollar corporations. Senator Nya D. Twayen of Nimba County’s strong revelation about ArcelorMittal, another exploitative company in Liberia, giving senators and representatives handsome allowances and taking them on luxurious tours is a manifestation of how these companies exploit Liberia. Why lavish tax holidays on a foreign company like Firestone? Why would a foreign company have leveraged on export and import duty exemptions? Laws enacted best suit foreign companies instead of workers, the counties, and Liberia at large. Why?

Prior to becoming president, Liberia’s current president, Joseph Boakai, visited Firestone in 2023 and promised both workers and retirees that if he became president, he would work in their interest in ensuring that the high level of exploitation is eradicated or at most mitigated. Nearly two years have passed since President Boakai took office in Liberia, yet nothing has been done to bring smiles to the faces of workers. I hesitate to be too harsh, but it seems the president has received what he wanted from them—their votes—and has since abandoned their plights. If that’s not the case, why is he refusing to take the necessary actions that will favor workers at the plantation? This is the kind of bureaucracy Firestone and other concession companies use to exploit Liberia.

The Wretched Conditions:

The magnitude of exploitation being exhibited by Firestone in Liberia is unheard of. During our recent survey at Firestone, especially in the Cotton Tree belt, the wretched conditions that workers and their families are faced with became visible. It’s clear the company hasn’t

made any gigantic impact in the lives of workers and the constituents of Margibi County at large.

In an interview with Newdawn Newspaper on July 21, 2024, Firestone’s General Manager, Seamus Gunton, highlighted that the company exports over 100 million pounds of Technically Specified Rubber (TSR) annually. Moreover, the Market Inside Data has revealed that Firestone Export Value from May 2024 to April 2025 was at $83.61 million. https://www.marketinsidedata.com/en/company/firestone-liberia-incorporated/9d1f2d2fce55ff229150ddd29b58c7dd/LR

Based on the information provided by the company general manager, It’s challenging to determine the exact cost for the 100 million pounds of Technically Specified Rubber (TSR) that Firestone exports annually due to a lack of specific data on their procurement practices and negotiated prices.

Also, based on the 2025 retail price range, which is from US$0.45 to US$1.34 per pound, the cost could be estimated at $134 million annually.

https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/rubber

Furthermore, based on the 2025 wholesale price range, which is from US$0.31 to US$0.93 per pound, 100 million pounds of TSR would cost $93 million. https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/rubber

What is mind-blowing about this is, despite the millions of dollars it has been generating from Liberia, workers at the Institution still live in makeshift and dilapidated structures. Workers are still subjected to pit latrines; they have little access to electricity; there is limited access to a better health care delivery system; the access to qualitative education is rare, etc. After almost a century of operation in Liberia, Firestone is yet to brag about owning a university that would prepare sons and daughters of the proletariat class for the larger society.

Secondary schools in the various divisions across the plantation are inadequate, and the few available are in deplorable conditions. Worst of all, none of those schools’ standards can be compared to a secondary school in the United States, despite the company being an American owned. As a result of the limited education being provided in the region, many children aren’t up to the task. Our organized “Meet the Challenge” competition among the kids of the Cotton Tree Belt was sufficient enough to highlight that the company isn’t investing in education.

More to this, Tappers work approximately 12 hours a day without safety equipment (gloves, goggles, rain boots, rain coats and other safety gears) unless they purchase them all by themselves. “While Trapping rubbers, many times we get bitten by snakes. Some of us are only alive today by the grace of God” a retiree expressed to us.

The Collective Bargaining:

Workers who dedicated more than a decade to the company end up being disregarded and denied essential social benefits, sometimes referred to the National Social Security and Welfare Corporation (NASSCORP) for assistance, which wasn’t part of their agreement at the inception of their employment with the giant-size rubber company. At times, the exploitative retirement method—popularly known as the “Golden Handshake” is used. In this, the monthly stipend scheme for retired employees is reduced to a diminutive handout and is only given once after retirement, which is unable to meet their basic financial needs. “…When I got employed by Firestone, I was earning 200 USD monthly…when I got retired, my pension had been reduced to 5 USD! What can 5 USD do for me?...” a worker expressed to me.

Though a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which when extended to all workers inclusive of both permanent and contract employees, would make them cater to their terrible health conditions and lessen their burdens after retirement, the management of Firestone would never yield or fall prey to it. Firestone management ignores the workers’ concerns and fails to engage in meaningful collective bargaining.

Conclusion:

Since the cradle upon which Firestone came to Liberia has been about the relentless pursuit of profit marking, it would neither make frantic efforts nor mitigate its exploitation. The yearn for profit will only increase and shift exploitation in different forms.

Governments in post-war Liberia, from the eras of Sirleaf and Weah, and now Boakai, have done nothing substantive to adequately address workers’ plights. They would rather collude with Firestone because of the kickback many officials of the governments secretly received from the company. What a shame!!

Cde. Darius David Sumo is a Liberian Marxist-Leninist student radical, educator and an emerging writer; an Amílcar Cabral trained cadre. He is currently studying English Literature and Media & Communication at the University of Liberia. Cde. Sumo can be contacted via WhatsApp at +231777490692 or email: dariussumo@gmail.com