When will we be paid for the work we've done
When will we be paid for the work we've done

We fought in your wars in every land
To keep this country free, y'all, for women, children, and men
But every time we ask for pay or a loan
That's when everything seems to turn out wrong
We been beat up, called names, shot down and stoned
Every time we do right, somebody say we're wrong

Tell me
When will we be paid for the work we've done
When will we be paid for the work we've done

Listen
We worked this country from shore to shore
Our women cooked all your food and washed all your clothes
We picked cotton and laid the railroad steel
Worked our hands down to the bone at your lumber mill

Tell me
When will we be paid for the work we've done
When will we be paid for the work we've done

Will we ever be proud of "My country, tis of thee"?
Will we ever sing out loud, "Sweet land of Liberty"?
When will we be paid for the work we've done?
I wanna know
I wanna, I wanna, I wanna know (when, when, when, when)

When will we be paid for the work we've done
When will we be paid for the work we've done