Safeway implemented this back in 2005 and it was soon apparent it made their female cashier unsafe to do. But they kept up the policy for years.

Of course women being stalked and harassed is their fault for not being "nicer" to random men. 🤦🏻‍♀️

According to them, it's always women's fault for men's bad behavior.

When I was in my early 20's I managed a deli restaurant. This guy came in for lunch everyday, to the point where I knew his name and order by heart. I would smile and say "hi Matt", then complete the transaction. He was always super kind and friendly. One day he asked me out and I had to tell him no, that I had a bf. Everytime he came in for lunch after that he was a total dick, then he stopped coming entirely

Yep.

Men are absolutely terrible at reading verbal and non-verbal cues, standard

This is why I usually do not respond to men in public. Unless it’s an incredibly formal “thanks” and then hurry along. They mistake any kindness for attraction and then act like they’ve been tricked when they’re rejected

And also, “being nice” is a survival technique, which makes this topic all the more appalling

I can't even fathom the way some men think.

I have known "that guy". The man who thinks every server or cashier is into him. Thankfully the man I knew didn't go bother anyone but we all had to hear about the new woman he met buying a coffee.

In the UK in the early 2000s (ye olden days) worked in a store as a teen that put firstname surname on employee name badges. Had a mf look me up in the phone book and was able to find my (parents') home address and phone number. And managers still got mad when I covered my badge