Guests challenge fat fee at German hotel

　　按体重收费遭质疑 店老板亲自做辩护

　　ON May 12, a German hotel owner who charges guests according to their weight defended himself against accusations he was discriminating against fat people.

　　Juergen Heckrodt said the 50 cents (US$0.64) per kilogram rate he charges for his hotel is competitive for local three-star hotels and added there is a 74-euro (US$94) limit for a double room for those who refuse to get on the scale.

　　"It's not discrimination at all," Heckrodt said. "First of all, there's the upper limit. And besides that I don't force anyone onto the scale. "

　　Heckrodt got the idea to charge by the kilogram when he noticed one guest gained weight every year. He told her jokingly he would soon start charging her an extra fee for being so heavy. A year later, she had lost 35 kilograms and asked for a discount. He thought the request seemed reasonable, so he began to charge guests by the pound.

　　德国一家按顾客体重收取住店费的旅店近日接连收到投诉，说此种收费标准是对胖人的歧视。本月12日，旅店老板约尔根海克罗德出面为自己辩护。

　　海克罗德先生说，“我们住店费的收取标准是每公斤0.5欧元（0.64美元），对于拒绝称量体重的体胖顾客，我们还规定了双人间的最高房价为74欧元（94美元）。作为一家三星级宾馆，这样的价格在本地是很有竞争力的。我们既设定了收费的上限，又没有强迫顾客称量体重，所以，怎么能说本店这样做是在歧视胖人呢？”

　　海克罗德是在玩笑间萌发这种收费念头的。他曾对一位常光顾其旅店的女顾客说，她体重年年增长，店里要对像她这样的胖人收取额外的费用。没想到，一年后，这位女顾客成功瘦身，一下子减掉了35公斤，同时提出享受住店费折扣。海克罗德觉得这个请求也算合理，自此便开始按顾客的体重收取住店费用。

　　Insurer offers policy for World Cup "sick days"

　　爱足球有理 请病假有偿

　　A DUTCH insurer is offering employers in the country the chance to insure themselves against the sudden rise in staff sick days expected during next month's soccer World Cup.

　　Tens of thousands of Dutch workers phoned in ill during the European Championships in Portugal in 2004, with sickness levels rising 20 per cent on days when the Dutch national side played.

　　Under Dutch law, companies must pay employees who are too ill to report to work. They can insure themselves against this, but most policies apply only to absences longer than two weeks.

　　The insurer said it would waive the usual two-week time limit and pay out for any employees absent on the day of a Netherlands match or the day after, regardless of the excuse given.

　　2006世界杯足球赛下个月开赛在即，荷兰一家保险公司眼光独到，他们预见到比赛期间会有许多热爱足球的员工假装生病休假，因此推出“病假”险，意在缓解企业雇主由此带来的经济损失。

　　据了解，荷兰员工在足球比赛期间请“病假”的现象很普遍。2004年葡萄牙欧洲足球锦标赛期间，企业收到数十万的请“病假”电话，荷兰国家队比赛日前后，休“病假”的人数更是激增了20%。

　　根据荷兰法律，企业必须为因病无法工作的雇员支付工资。为减少相关损失，企业可以向保险公司投保，但多数保险条款只适用超过两周的假期。这次，该保险公司打破了两周的休假限制，即无论员工提出何种借口，只要是在荷兰队比赛当日缺勤，都可得到保险公司的补偿。

　　Burglar gives massage to victim

　　窃贼遭擒 都是心软惹的祸？

　　A BURGLAR gave a 35-year-old woman a shoulder massage for several hours after breaking into her apartment in central Tokyo and tying her up, police said on May 12.

　　He stole 210,000 yen (US$1,900) in cash and her bank cash card, though he later mailed the card to her as she requested after withdrawing 980,000 yen (US$8869) from her account.

　　Lee Jin-se, 29, a South Korean, admitted to the burglary and told police he lingered in the woman's apartment and gave her the massage "to relax her."

　　Police believe Lee waited there until business hours began, as virtually no cash machines operate around-the-clock in Japan.

　　本月12日，日本东京中部一寓所内发生了一桩离奇入室抢劫案，涉案的嫌疑犯在非法取得现金和银行卡后并没有立刻离开，而是为遭捆绑的35岁女失主连续作了几小时的肩部按摩。

　　据警方分析，他这样做可能是在等待自动提款机的正常工作时间，在日本，人们不能24小时都使用提款机。

　　据调查，该劫犯是韩国人，现年29岁，名叫李金泽。他交待了作案的全过程，并称自己在女失主家逗留并为她按摩是想让其“放松”一下。他说自己从该女子处共抢走21万日元(1,900美元)和一张银行卡，在从卡上提走98万日元（8，869美元）后，应女失主的请求，他已经将卡寄还。