For five and a half years, I managed group homes for the developmentally disabled. I was "salary plus", meaning that, while I was salaried, I still got paid for overtime past my scheduled 46 hours a week. I was quite definitely a "professional" employee, and my salary was just over $24,000 a year.
I was unable to hold another job or even pursue a further education without the consent of my employer, so my salary was limited to what my employer paid me. I was expected to be on call 24/7, and was even held accountable for staff absences during my off hours (I was saved from a "neglect" investigation when a client came home and the scheduled staff was not there simply because I was at a dental appointment with another client...ON MY OFF HOURS. Had I not been on the clock, I would have had a formal investigation lodged against me). I worked 350 days out of one year, and once worked a stretch of 65 straight days while at this job.
The only consolation I received was my salary, which came in at a decent $42,000 that year. Had the new overtime rules been in effect, I would have received my straight salary of just over $24,000. And probably wouldn't have gotten the 15 days I DID get off that year.
signing off,
Gideon MacLeish