Italian workers mass to protest Monti cuts, reform Associated Press Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Updated 07:42 a.m., Saturday, June 16, 2012 ROME (AP) — Tens of thousands of Italian workers rallied in Rome on Saturday to protest pension cuts, tax hikes and labor reforms imposed by the government of Mario Monti and to demand more stable work, particularly for the young. The demonstration organized by Italy's main labor unions came a day after Monti's latest effort to stave off contagion from Europe's debt crisis. In the seven months it has been in power, Monti's government of technocrats has pushed through painful pension cuts, labor reforms to make it easier to fire workers and tax increases that have cut into the pockets of ordinary Italians already coping with hard times and youth unemployment at a staggering 36 percent.