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What you do not know about work & life in Poland.


Expat in Poland  
30 Jul 2016 /  #1
It's been a few months since I arrived in Warsaw, Poland, it's also my first experience living and working in Eastern Europe. Before I came to Poland, I wish that I had some clues what to expect from the local culture and peoples.

Many of the Poles in the Western European countries/North America are insignificant, they blend in and assimilate into the local cultures easily, they shed their skin to be just like one of us. They are forced out of their socialist-communinist mindset to become more aware of a democratic system of lifestyle.

By nature Poles have an inferiority or superiority complex depending on where they are born or their social status. Much like many cultures they are a culture to themselves, very closed and innately cruel, a quality that surfaces and is visible when working with them, they are unforgiving and vindictive. They will treat people of colour like dogs.

In Poland, the Poles are two faced, they are cameleons that change with the environment. People of colour are not welcome in Poland. This is a fact. Poles are gungo about promoting a 'white' Poland and prefer the to have immigrants or workers from the Scandinavian countries. If a coloured is hired it is because they are not able to find 'white' people to come to Poland unless it's a Pole themselves that have not got their papers and have had to return to Poland (after the Brexit, hopefully they will return to Poland). If your complexion is dark, and you are not a blond blue eyed person, the local Poles will not want you to sit next to you in a bus, they will get up if you sit next to them, get use to them turning their faces away from you or lowering their eyes as if to say that you are repulsive to them.

But pity them, many of them have the mindset of those from the gutter who may hold worthless degrees from univerisities who cannot get a job. Expect the local restraunts not give you a seat or be turned away, or serve you at the grocery stores, expect to be laughed at and mocked in the local stores if you speak English. This discrimation is unspoken, they will deny that there is an issue of racial discrimination. They have a mindset where they believe that those of dark complexion are of slaves or menial workers.

It's unimaginable that the Poles are seen as beggers of the world, they are called thieves in the Western countries living off of our tax payers money. Many of us sacrifice our comfortable life to come to this land to work for comparative low paying jobs possibly to work in poor conditions. It is time to snap out of our big generous hearts Poles are not deserving of the compassion, they have lived long enough off the hardworking people of the West. It is better to cut off funding from countries like Poland so that they will innovate their way out of their own misery.

By the way, Poland has the lousiest customer service! Poland is privileged to be in the EU. They are surrounded by countries that have taken responsibility for their mistakes and are advancing forward. Poles never learn from others or their own mistakes, their level of awareness is very low, this is biggest culture shock that I had.

Diversity is a very fearful thing for them. Warsaw has a terrible society of socialites that ape the socialities in NY. They are a madness unto themselves trying to revive a dead system of the glories of a bygone era of defeated monarchs which they desperately cling to in the hopes of raising them from the dead.

Poles are attached to their history, they live off the traumas of those that suffered by playing the blame game and getting the largest amount of funding from the EU.

A notable quality of the Poles is that they will never take responsibility for their wrong doing (they are great schemers-snakes in the grass be very careful when you work with them, keep a record of everything, their employment contracts are ridiculous) they will grumble so much that it will wear you out and leave you totally drained.

Poland has the highest suicide and depression rate in the EU. Don't expect Poles to smile, much like their Russian bretheren they still have serious trust issues. Poles look down on non-profit organizations as 'poor'. They are so afraid of poverty/lack. Polish people are not warm hearted, compassionate or kind.

Poles hate the Germans, this is a fact, if you have a German surname be aware. My comment may sound negative based on my experience here in Warsaw, it can be a painful experience, sometimes it is better to voice out truth that is concealed and brushed under the carpet.

For those that are Caucassian they may not encounter discrimination as people colour. The lesson from this that some of us may need to learn to be thick skinned, square your shoulders and walk confidently with your head held up hight.

If life orchestrates us to experience the harshess of people perhaps to teach us lessons which we otherwise may never learn living in the West with so much warmth and goodness of human beings. We come from liberated societies, a democratic system of governance, diverse cultures and backgrounds, and generocity that is a way of life for our societies.

Poles are mixed race of peoples. Jews are accepted on the surface but Poles prefer not to have them around in their country!
Wulkan  - | 3136  
30 Jul 2016 /  #2
I'm terribly sorry to hear about you bad experience in Poland, now you can kindly pack up and get back to where you came from, no point suffering any longer, we have only one life to live.
Gshegosh  - | 8  
30 Jul 2016 /  #3
Before I say "Hate 'n' go" I would really like to read from Expat in Poland not the "common sense" truth about the Poles he read himself/herself in the press of doubtful provenance but his/her personal examples of what he/she writes about.

Revealed truth backfires in the long run.

Dare to share, Expat in Poland?
Gaurang  - | 4  
31 Jul 2016 /  #4
hi,

I have an offer from Poznan. I am Indian and now after reading your post I am giving it another thought about going to Poland. I thought it's a cheaper country as compared to other countries and so decided to go. however, salary is also less as compared other country.

my question is, how difficult it is to move to Germany or Netherland from Poland? This would be my second option if things doesn't work out in Poland and I find it racist.
mafketis  38 | 10964  
1 Aug 2016 /  #5
my question is, how difficult it is to move to Germany or Netherland from Poland?

Informally, easy. To do so legally (as in pay taxes and not worry about being deported) is another question entirely and you would need to contact the immigration authorities in those countries to find out.

if things doesn't work out in Poland and I find it racist.

Your best option if Poland doesn't please you (and it probably won't) would be to return to the country you arrived from. If you regard Poland as an entry point to richer countries then you're probably not welcome in Europe.
Dreamergirl  4 | 273  
1 Aug 2016 /  #6
You probably should have researched what Poles are like as a culture before moving there, no point complaining now.
kpc21  1 | 746  
1 Aug 2016 /  #7
If your complexion is dark, and you are not a blond blue eyed person, the local Poles will not want you to sit next to you in a bus, they will get up if you sit

It's not their fault, they are afraid of the unknown. It's not such common to see a color-skinned person in Poland (maybe except for university areas of big cities).

But pity them, many of them have the mindset of those from the gutter who may hold worthless degrees from univerisities who cannot get a job.

I am ashamed of them... But try to understand that. White person is something which you know, see everywhere. Black or Asian - it's the unknown world, which you can see only on TV, mostly in American (or Asian) movies (American movies which don't depict black people as angels). Even for me, subconsciously, the white people are more trustworthy, although I know it has nothing to do with the color of the skin. It's difficult to fight with that. I don't want to say this, but it looks like racism is in our Polish blood and it will take generations to change it.

About the grocery stores and English, try to learn some basic Polish phrases. I am sure they will appreciate that, even if you make mistakes. We all know that Polish is difficult for foreigners.

By the way, Poland has the lousiest customer service! Poland is privileged to be in the EU.

Speak about concrete things, I don't get what you mean. If you mean ubiquities beaurocracy, customer service in shops, mobile phone providers etc. - is it the fault of us, Poles? No, it annoys us equally well! About the beaurocracy, I have heard that it isn't better in France. Actually after almost a year of stay in Germany, I see many things that work better in Poland and many things that work equally bad in Germany, even though Poles usually think they work better in Germany.

They are a madness unto themselves trying to revive a dead system of the glories of a bygone era of defeated monarchs

What do you mean? That freak Janusz Korwin-Mikke? Noone takes his idea seriously, he is more like a clown. And his political party is just a machine to extract money from the governmental election funds.

Poland has the highest suicide and depression rate in the EU. Don't expect Poles to smile, much like their Russian bretheren they still have serious trust issues.

It must have more to do with the geographical location. It's always so that the southern-European people are most happy. Maybe it depends on the amount of sun... But there is such a dependency.

Poles hate the Germans, this is a fact, if you have a German surname be aware.

Just because of the history. A country which has always tried to conquer Poland, and even managed a few times. Not to mention that a vast part of the western Poland (and north-eastern as well) was for centuries in German hands.

And did terrible things during the WW2. Actually started the WW2, which, even leaving the whole holocaust behind, was a terrible thing.

My advices:
1. Try to see the positive things!
2. Try to understand.

Your best option if Poland doesn't please you (and it probably won't) would be to return to the country you arrived from.

That's the point. If you feel better if your home country, just return there.

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