Steve,
I also wonder if the sort of issue that we have been discussing above has an equivalent impact in other languages
Interesting question.
I can say a few words about my first language, Russian. (I used to know Ukrainian almost as well, too, but it got very rusty from the lack of use very quickly.)
In Russian, there are many ways to address people. Most of them have little to do with political correctness in it's western understanding. Say, there are no strong feministic issues. No 'he/she' issues. Some of the addresses, though, have age connotation, and that could be the reason of objection, too. Say, a virtually genderless equivalent of 'guys' also exist, but suitable usually only among young people, incl. children, and among long time friends. Probably, there is no exact equivalents of "you people" or "you folk", though, so it's hard to compare. Some of the used addresses could be “citizen”, in it’s male or female form, some times with additional words. “Friends”, “comrades”, “citizens”, as official addressing of a big audience still exist.
As for popular street address (also suitable in some slightly more official places, where you don't know how to address people), it's now (literally translated) "girl", "young man", "man", "woman", even "grandma"/"grandpa", to really old and respected people. But their more realistic translation would be "Miss", "Mr.", "Ma'm". Say, you can always address a receptionist/secretary as "girl" (perceived like 'Miss'). But don't you think of calling her boss "Man" or "Woman". It would not ever be taken as "Mr." or "Ma'm", but as a rude talk. Use a construction that includes position name, or formal full first name (which includes a special form of father’s first name, too), or some other way. You can be addressed by staff in a doctor’s office (or some other office) like that, to. “Next, please. Yes, you, woman (meaning “ma’m”)”. “Girl (of course, meaning “miss”), how long do I have to wait?” “[Young] man (“Mr.”), would you happen to know what time is it?”. But it is in no way a formal address, unlike "Miss", "Ms.", "Mr.", or "Ma'm".
As for the age connotation I mentioned, here are a few stories.
My friend’s friend, being in her early 20s, in a crowded store, was asked of something by an older woman, probably in her 40s. It went something like “Woman (you remember, it’s like “ma’m”), would you please move a little?”. She got gravely insulted by the address. She responded with “Sure, grandma”.
My mom, being then in her 50s, was addressed “girl” (“Miss”) by a woman in her 70s. My mom, smiling softly, asked: “You calling me a girl?”. The woman responded: “For me, you could be a girl.”
My friend and me, being college freshmen teen girls, went to a youth camp and decided there, just the two of us, to undertake a little trip to the nearest town on foot for the reasons I can’t recall (possibly, movies, or shopping, or just general interest). We got lost and had to ask for directions. We spotted two men in their middle 20s, and after short teasing and giggling as to what to call them, decided to address them as “boys”, as we would our classmates of our own age. To be fair, we should have properly called them “young men”, or just say “Excuse us, ...”, without any address, but we probably got a little adventurous. To our “Boys, would you help us please? Can you tell us ....” we got sooooo long look, telling us it was sooooo inappropriate and familiar, we never ever dared to repeat the experiment again. (But we did get directions, nevertheless.)
