In this liberal world, there are two sides to this topic. One is it's unacceptable, as the person is being overly familiar with you. Happens here in the UK a lot, especially with shop assistants. I've been called Guy, Mate, Babe, Hon, Chick, Lovely, Luv, Dear (usually with a sarcastic edge to it). In Scotland, women were/are still called Hen or Lass. Australia it's Sheila.

The other angle is it's a term on endearment. To those of us of a "certain" age, we remember times when it was exactly that, not with any sinister meaning.

Always remember one incident in a shop, think my mother was with me. Young male assistant asked "how are you guys today?" Without thinking, I looked down at my chest then challenged him, in fun, that he needed his eyes testing. Threw him for a moment before he burst out laughing. I was, as someone old enough to be his mother, giving him a lesson in good manners.