As a famous interaction from the genius television show Mad Men goes, Don: «It’s your job! I give you money, you give me ideas.» Peggy: «And you never say thank you.» Don: «That’s what the money is for.» And it’s genius because you understand both sides. Peggy is feeling under-appreciated at work, but Don is there to remind her that the appreciation comes in the form of a salary. If you didn’t have that, then you would have a little bit more of a right to feel under-appreciated. 

Of course, you need both appreciation and money in order to have a good, sustainable job, but one is usually more important than the other. At least it is for most people. Most people would rather be earning huge sums for little appreciation than peanuts for praise (though of course, it all depends on what the work is). A huge problem comes when you don’t have either.