State ... "Left sign as payments!" (8)
I believe the answer is:
salaries
'payments' is the definition.
(salary is a kind of payment)
'state left sign' is the wordplay.
'state left' becomes 'sal' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should believe this answer much more).
'sign' becomes 'Aries' (star sign).
'sal'+'aries'='SALARIES'
'as' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for salaries that I've seen before include "remuneration" , "Wages" , "Payments from employers" .)