Polish woman living in England is moving back to Poland. How much money do I need?

Just to let you know, in most of the UK tenants renting flats complain the rent is costing most of their salary, That is why a lot of people in the UK under 30 live with their parents now! They never did before, it was embarrassing if you were still at home after 20. Now, it's the norm there.

I hope things improve for you in Poland, but also please remember many Poles in the UK are in shared accommodation and struggling there too. (Although some do tell me they love the UK and won't return.)

During last 10 months, appart from my full time work, I worked as a cleaner (once a week ( then my work day was 13hours). I could get in this way extra 200zł per month, but you have to include time to get to that place, plus, you don't do those jobs I conclude,, but those who do, know what effort does it take to clean e.g.150m house in 4-5hours.

I was working as a cleaner also as a student. After a year and a half of such work I started to have problems with health - osteoarthrisis - that was diagnosis. Doctor said - any very exhausting works. I still continued working for some time, later quitted, finished studies, found job, fortunately not physical one,, but low paid, so again when prices increased I came back to cleaning, hiding that fact from my emplyer in permamant placework, hiding the fact that I am a university graduate and what I do from the person where I cleaned. I hid it, as maybe it's common that people with higher education do this kind of work abroad, but not here. Abroad doing such jobs you can lead a proper life without worrying can tyou afford such basics as food, clothes, accommodation, here it's the way just to survive.

Harry - be a cleaner for some time in private houses. Your cleaning lady works at your place, plus probably in some other. Add her time to get from place to place. After some years of such intensive work you may deteriorate your health to the point that you may not do such job anymore, and what then?

After some break and getting better a bit, I standed again as a part time cleaner 10 months. I quitted in June as it's more reasonably due to my health. Fortunately I found another extra part time job, not as a cleaner fortunately, but for some time I worked in 3 places altogether, working 55hours per week. Only to the other source of finance support I could give up cleaning job, which is an extreme, but in Poland extremes happen very often.

you are spot on with this. It makes me sick how poorly teachers, nurses, dr.s, prof's and most other public service employee's are paid.

Not as sick as me!
Good luck aniaa. I hope your luck (and your health) improves.

I worked one summer clearing out an old factory (and warehouse space): harder work (heavy stuff to lift), dirtier (the place hadn't been cleaned for years) and more dangerous too (sharp things all over the place and god only knows what waste products were in there).


She mostly works full days and so travels twice per day (just as everybody else who works does). I very much doubt she works in more than two places in a day.

Cleaning a 150 sq.m house in four to five hours means you are doing a very shoddy job, which might explain why you were only being paid 3.85zl per hour (50zl per day (i.e. 200zl per month) for a 13-hour day is 3.85zl per hour). My flat is about a third of the size you claim that house was but my cleaner sometimes takes four hours to do it (if there is a lot of ironing). She does a good job and that might be why she earns more than five time more than you claim you did.

You misunderstood:
13 hours = 5h cleaning + 8h my permament work.. As a cleaner I had 10zł/h. I was to clean the whole house in 4-5hours (for cleaning the house I received 50zł). i often had to do the work in 4hours wanted to be on time at my permament work place. Add here cleaning all windows every 3-4months, for which maybe your cleaner is paid seperately.

Cleaning a 150 sq.m house in four to five hours means you are doing a very shoddy job :) you even didn't offend me. I know what good job I did, and every person for whom I worked would never resigned from me if it wasn't me who wanted to quitt.

They're not that poorly paid, and some of the rights they have is unbelievable. What's true is that teachers in the beginning are very poorly paid - but that goes up rapidly if they develop their career. What's missing in Poland is a proper structure for progression in terms of management - the system of appointing directors is absolutely insane.

Uh that is not true and you are being very rude in how you are saying it. Our house is 260 sq meters. When our cleaning lady cleans she does it all in less than 5 hours and it is spotless. I do not ask her to do any ironing...I find that idea so weird. But to say that a 4-5 hour cleaning is something as small as 150 sq m is shoddy is very imcorrect and rude.

Agree - besides, the owner may have asked her to work 4-5 hours only and do as much as she can in this time. If house is cleaned regularly - it is enough to keep it that way, especially if occupants are at work most of the day and there are no children.

My advice - don't move back! Depends on where you live though. If you can get a good job here it might be worth it - I know UK has it's problems, like being particularly anal about just about everything at the moment, but Poland is the same, just in different ways. It's not possible to tell you how much you would, need, it depends on your expected standard of living etc. let's say 3000zl would be "ok". average wage in Poland is around 2,200zl (I think). Again, depends on your profession.

Well over 3000zl these days, with over 4000zl in major cities.

Agree with that - it was rude! Shame on you, whoever you are! :)

Poland loves directors and managers and under managers and assistants and ... well you know what:) It's a hang on from commie times when everyone had to be gainfully employed. The truth is that if the system here was more efficient hmmmm like a central database between all Urząd so that you don't have to provide same info in paper to each of them all the time, they are scared that people would lose their jobs and unemployment goes up. It's a bit ironic really, that so many educated people leave poland cos are frustrated at exactly the system that the system taught them how to fix, but don't get the chance. In fairness, things are changing though. Try to do any business here and you will quickly see how much of your time you are made to spend chasing papers.!

Merged: Living on 1500zl a month in small Polish city?

is 1500zl a month good for living in small city in poland with two babies? please help

it is possible if you have your rent secured but it will not be a comfortable living

I lived with my mom for even less (about 1100 but the rent was small) but babies have their special needs and these are costly

i have my rent covered. how much do you think would be comfortable

2000 pln should be comfortable until your kids go to kindergarten which is now compulsory from the age 5

and when they go to preszkool does this increase from 2000zl or decrease

it depends on whether they go on a short programme (5 hours) or you leave them long hours - if you leave them long hours you need to pay significantly more for the preschool

i would only wish to leave them short hours.

then the expenses don;t grow dramatically - but you need to think further about school as well - books for kids are a big expense for Polish families and unless policies change (because the cost is driven by government policies) it will remain high in the next few years

ok so is 2000zl ok for me and two kids. rent is covered. 2000zl will be for food clothes and fuel for car

you should be allright with that much

I am having dejavu. was this not asked a while ago?

No. You'll live in poverty.

20km per day x 30 = 600km pcm x 8 / 100 = 48 litres x 5.61zł = 270zł pcm for fuel

2000 - 270 = 1730 / 30 = 58zł per day

Yes, by the same poster. I thought it seemed familiar as well.

people can live on little money month to month. but do you want to? or is it you have to?