Reading about the Polish military during WW2, I noticed that only a small portion of Polish soldiers joined the Polish People's Army created by the Soviets, and even then they had to have a lot of non-Polish officers because there weren't enough Poles. So I wondered how they were regarded by the rest of the Polish population, even if they fought the Germans. Were they considered Soviet collaborators?

Answering your question.
It was not because there were few Polish officers, Soviet officers were at the head of the units. Only because no Polish officers and soldiers were trusted. In addition, over 20,000 Polish officers, the Soviet NKVD murdered in Katyn, Miednoye and other Soviet prisons.
What to accept soldiers of the People's Polish Army, by society? They were accepting like the Polish army. With respect and honor. Civilians were glad that they were liberated by Poles from the German occupation, not by the Soviets.
Generally, soldiers of the First and Second Armi of the People's Polish Army had and have great respect in Polish society.

Small in relation to what? A total number of Poles fighting in WWII? Bear in mind that it was hardly a choice - which side to "join". Those who managed to flee to France after September 1939 joined Brits. PPA recruited their soldier from Poles that were resettled by force to Siberia and other desolated regions of Russia in 1940. For these people joining PPA was the only chance to become free again and get back home to Poland. For this reason alone I don't think there was ever any resentment towards soldiers, although it soon became clear that this army will help to install communist rule in Poland.

Yet there was also the Anders' Army.
It was conscripted under Societ-British agreement from Polish POW, shipped by the Russians to Iran, from where it went by foot,crossing Iran and Iraq and arriving in Palestine.It served under British command, formed the backbone of Polish II Corps and fought in Africa,Sicilly and Italy.

So Soviet held Polish POW fought on the side of Western Allies.

"PPA recruited their soldier from Poles that were resettled by force to Siberia and other desolated regions of Russia in 1940. For these people joining PPA was the only chance to become free again and get back home to Poland. " Sounds kinda like the U.S.'s 442nd RCT. Go fight or rot in a camp in the middle of nowhere. The Nisei got the slightly cleaner end of the proverbial [auto-censored]ty stick.

Many Polish soldiers and Ukranian after the fall of France managed to escape through the Swiss border and taken as POW by the Swiss army and were there for the duration of the war, in Losone the village of my grandmother there was a Camp for Polish-POW, they were very free and the officers were often hosted by families, on my grandmother's farm they hosted one, they were very well seen by the population and remembered with honor even today, they worked reclaiming land near the river and built a mountain road that we still call "the road of the Poles", have been part of the village life for more than 6-7 years, went to village festivals and after work in the taverns, unfortunately my aunt with age is losing her mind and now and then he asks my grandmother and the other sister if they want to go dancing with the Poles and who knows where the beautiful Polish officer is !!! ...


After the war, all the soldiers were forced to re-arm but a certain number as soon as they arrived in Poland returned to Switzerland mainly to marry the girls known during the "imprisonment", I have a friend of the grandsons of one of these "war marriages"

The Polish claim the land


The camps


Sculpted and painted by the Poles during the construction of the road


Commemorative plate


the road


http://insubricahistorica.blogspot.com/2018/04/polish-army-in-insubrica-case-of-losone.html