AMHERST, N.S. — Truck inspection officers working at a weigh scale in Nova Scotia purposefully targeted brand new trucks because they would be easier to deal with and let pass other trucks with possible mechanical and safety problems.

Those and other revelations are included in a scathing report by the province’s Ombudsman, Dwight Bishop.

The review, which was obtained and reported on by the CBC, also stated that officers at the Amherst station on Highway 104 admitted to pulling over the required number of commercial vehicles early on in their shift so they could close the station for the rest of the night.

Meanwhile, supervisors often voided tickets issued by vehicle compliance officers, according to CBC.

Bishop blamed the "corrosive atmosphere" at the weigh station for the behavior and lax attitudes of some officers. He said the poisonous workplace has compromised public safety on the highways.

"This investigation has found the front line supervisor at the Amherst site and management have ineffectively managed the various problems at the workplace, allowing the conflicts to affect job performance," the report says.

This isn’t the first time Nova Scotia’s highway vehicle inspection system has been under the microscope. A year ago, the province’s inspector general released a critical report which found that trucks were too easily escaping inspection.

That report stated that enforcement staff lacked oversight and inspection guidelines and management was not adequately monitoring such things as scale hours of operation and the number of inspections conducted.

Dwight Bishop’s latest investigation was launched when four of the officers from the Amherst scales alleged that management practices were having a "negative impact" on their ability to perform their duties.

The officers "harassment and bullying" from management, the report says. One employee reportedly threatened to commit suicide, "in part, due to the work environment." 

The provincial transport ministry says it’s aware of the report and is looking into the matter.