MARCH 2 — The misconception that university lecturers in Malaysia enjoy high salaries and minimal professional demands is far from their lived realities.
The recent establishment of a special committee investigating the actual workload of lecturers in Malaysian public universities has shed light on their overwhelming work-related responsibilities. The pressure to meet teaching, evaluation, research, supervision, and administrative demands may lead to ethical compromises. If professional integrity is sacrificed for convenience or status, what does that imply for the credibility of Malaysian tertiary institutions?
Discussions on integrity in academia often focus on students, but lecturers must first lead by example. Academic misconduct extends beyond plagiarism and the questionable methods certain lecturers use to boost their publication counts. Two controversial but often overlooked workplace-related ethical concerns are workload disparity bias and institutionalised favouritism.
Workload disparity bias unfairly burdens hardworking lecturers with relatively more responsibilities. They may be drowned in more tasks because other colleagues, deliberately or not, underperform and feign incompetence. A more widely discussed term for this, recently popularised on social media, is weaponised incompetence. Over time, this strain creates a vicious cycle of burnout among those who constantly have to pick up the slack, thereby reinforcing an unjust system of duty distribution and rewards.
Institutionalised favouritism, on the other hand, refers to a deeply entrenched culture of mutual back-scratching in academia, particularly in postgraduate studies. This is when personal relationships override merit, awarding undue advantages to specific individuals. This favouritism manifests in various ways, such as mutual exchanges of favours (e.g. “If I pass your supervisee, you pass mine”) and the biased selection of supervisors and examiners based on personal connections rather than capabilities. While workplace relationships can be valuable, their unwarranted influence on professional decisions may affect hiring and promotions, to name a few. Power imbalances further complicate the issue, as junior academics may feel pressured to comply with their seniors’ unethical requests to protect their careers.
Ultimately, these two issues reflect insidious forms of workplace bullying and non-monetary corruption, respectively. Many fail to realise that the latter falls under Using Office or Position for Gratification (Bribe) (Abuse of Power/Position) [Section 23 MACC Act 2009]. These problems are tricky to address, as those who benefit from the system often shamelessly defend firmly embedded unethical academic practices, making ethical academics feel guilty for challenging them. When disproportionate workloads and favouritism take hold, silent struggles prevail, leading to declining productivity and a toxic work environment.
The prevailing Malaysian culture of laxity and ‘bending the rules’ may be to blame — ranging from family members casually expecting others to complete their work to professionals securing jobs through connections. Normalising concepts such as using ‘cables’ (connections) or even misusing the honourable virtue of generosity in “berkongsi rezeki” (sharing provisions) to justify favouritism contradicts the universal principles of fairness. In reality, from an Islamic perspective, for example, granting inept individuals undeserved advantages is sinful as it violates the rights of others and leads to various social harms (refer to Mufti of the Federal Territory’s Office’s online article dated June 9th, 2022). However, the cultural norm of maintaining harmony and not ‘ruining’ someone’s “periuk nasi” (livelihood) discourages many individuals from speaking out, as they fear repercussions, social alienation, or sabotage.
Despite challenges, employers and employees must report and address academic misconduct to foster a culture of integrity in academia. One way to achieve this is through digital communication platforms highlighting its dangers and consequences. I commend Bahagian Integriti of Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) for consistently updating staff on academic integrity issues through regular email updates.
Ergo, lecturers should feel empowered to discuss professionally when faced with an unfair workload and firmly say ‘no’ if asked for unethical favours. Lecturers must critically redefine ingrained yet misleading notions of academic ethics to shape principled future generations and uphold the integrity of Malaysia’s higher education.
As Ramadan unfolds, let us all—regardless of creed—seek genuine barakah (blessings) in our earnings by ensuring fair academic practices.
True success is built on integrity, not shortcuts.
*The writer is a senior lecturer at Selangor UiTM.
** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
