Isn't the bag cost included in the price of the goods the store sells, just like salaries, utility costs, taxes and every other expense the business incurs?
Of course not. There's a special "Employees 'Voluntary' Bag Fund" that all workers 'contribute' to. It's used to purchase the stock of bags used at the checkout counters. All Senior Management is exempt so the burden only falls on the lowly peons. I guess you never worked in the grocery industry, so it's easy to understand why you never heard of this fund.