Brief Labor Action at New York Times

Hundreds of members of The New York Times Company's newsroom staff staged a brief rally Monday afternoon related to the lack of progress on a new contract with the company.

The action lasted for less than 10 minutes. Involved union members met in the building's lobby, with many wearing stickers that said “Believe Us.” Some held signs that read “Without us it's just blank space” and “Save Our Times.” Employees gathered on the staircase of the 41st Street entrance of The Times's headquarters and took a group photograph to give to the company's incoming chief executive, Mark Thompson. Mr. Thompson, who does not start with the company until the middle of November, is visiting The Times this week for some meetings.

This is the second such action in two weeks by Times employees. On Oct. 8, staff members left the building briefly. Earlier this year some workers gathered and stood by silently as top editors headed into the paper's afternoon editorial meetin g.

On Oct. 10, The Times and the union agreed to work with the mediator Marty Sheinman. The disagreements involve the company's pensions, salaries and health insurance.