He who serves well need not be afraid to ask his wages.
Meaning: Honest work earns honest pay; integrity in service justifies demanding fair compensation.
Origin: Recorded in A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases, an undated collection published in London by Whittaker & Co. around 1880 and credited to Thomas Preston. Its earlier history hasn't been traced.
More proverbs about Human Nature
- He that waits on another man's trencher, makes many a late dinner. — Depending on others' generosity for sustenance leaves you hungry and uncertain about when…
- You may be a wise man though you cannot make a watch. — Expertise in one domain doesn't diminish wisdom; mastery of mechanics isn't prerequisite…
- Choose your wife on Saturday, and not on a Sunday. — Marry in everyday circumstances, not during festive occasions when judgment is clouded by…
- A man's best fortune or his worst is his wife. — A spouse fundamentally shapes one's life trajectory through shared decisions, emotional s…
- A man cannot both wive and thrive in a year. — Marriage requires sustained attention and resources that conflict with building wealth or…
- Many go for wool and come back shorn. — Pursuing gain from others often results in losing what you already possess through their…
From our idioms
- second-rate — Of inferior quality; not the best.
- have second thoughts — To begin to have doubts; to question and reexamine a decision.
- see red — To get angry.