What's the point of labour laws if you aren't supposed to follow them in order to be a good employee?

[josephus]

Where I live the laws state that no one is allowed to work more than 8 hours a day and no more than 48 hours a week.
Sure enough, my office hours are 9am to 6pm (8 hours of work) on Monday through Friday. But in order to be a good employee, more than 8 hours of work a day is required.
So what's the point of having these kinds of laws if you are supposed to break them?

[gillian59]

You should talk to your workabout it.