A flash strike by LPG cylinder loading and unloading workers from the early hours of Saturday at the LPG bottling plant of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) here disrupted movement of LPG carrying lorries and hit supplies in seven districts including Ernakulam.

According to sources, the flash strike affected the supply of around 45,000 cylinders, both domestic and commercial, on Saturday. Company sources said the issue appeared to have been resolved, and that supplies were expected to resume on Monday. N.K. George, general secretary of Petroleum and Gas Workers Union, said the oil company management had called a meeting with workers’ representatives on Monday. If the talks were successful, the strike would be withdrawn, he added.

An LPG transporter said the workers resorted to the flash strike without notice demanding that they be deployed for shifts as per the list provided by trade unions. The transporters expressed their inability to do so. They raised serious concerns over what they called illegal flash strike called by loading and unloading trade union workers.

LPG supplies to Ernakulam, Thrissur, Alappuzha, Kottayam, and parts of Kozhikode were hit by the strike. The transporters claimed there was perennial shortage of hands at the loading and unloading terminal, and that the dispute had been pending for a while now.