A group of drivers at Dunedin Taxis has accused the board of failing to address their concerns, including allegations of doctored logbooks and driver health and safety.
Board chairman Paul Oliver rubbished the claims and says the drivers were "telling stories" because of their personal differences with the directors.
NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) confirmed it was investigating a claim that a driver, who is also a director of the company, allegedly doctored logbooks using another person’s ID so that they could rack up extra hours.
The dispute boiled over at a special general meeting on April 13 that ended in drivers shoving each other and threats of violence.
A representative of the aggrieved taxi drivers described the tension at the meeting to re-elect the board.
"The group which is in power now thought that we will re-elect them and nothing else will happen to us."
The aggrieved drivers brought up unaddressed complaints of misuse of power by the directors, including the accusation of doctoring logbooks.
When the driver put forward evidence to back the accusation, one of the directors ordered one of his friends to punch a driver.
The driver made a formal complaint regarding his health and safety to Mr Oliver, but once again no action was taken.
The drivers felt like they were not heard.
"We don’t want to stop anyone from receiving their daily bread.
"We just want them to work according to the company’s constitution and policy."
Mr Oliver said the meeting came to a premature end when it "got a bit noisy" and there was shoving.
The Otago Daily Times was invited to another meeting, on May 5, where the shareholder drivers again voiced their complaints to Mr Oliver.
Drivers were visibly upset as they demanded action be taken.
After the meeting, Mr Oliver told the ODT that drivers who missed out on jobs felt cheated and were complaining about perceived preferential treatment from the board.
"The people you saw were from the opposite group and they get worked up about perceived wrongs.
"What we do in the office is try to keep things as fair as we possibly can.
"If I found there was any preferential treatment going on, then those drivers would be out of a job," Mr Oliver said.
The complaints were based on perception, not reality, he said.
The representative of the aggrieved drivers said the group had proof to back their allegations, which they had provided to Mr Oliver.
However, they said Mr Oliver never took any action against directors on the board.
"Those are genuine complaints."
Meanwhile, NZTA confirmed it was investigating "an alleged breach of regulatory compliance involving a driver operating from Dunedin Airport".
"We’re not in a position to provide any further comment on the alleged incident at this time."
The complainant, who contacted the ODT, alleged the director used the other driver’s ID to manipulate logbook records, allowing him to exceed the legal driving limits for taxi drivers of 14 hours per day, or 70 hours a week.
"This is a direct threat to public safety, as fatigue-related accidents are a well-documented risk in the transport industry," the complaint said.
Mr Oliver, said the allegation was "total nonsense" and he had not found proof there was any basis to it.
He could not remember meeting the second driver in person and believed the logbook was not doctored.
The director accused of doctoring the log book denied any wrongdoing.
