Sorry Dawn, but have you been in this situation before ? It actually takes time to set yourself up with another job and get out. Three people did manage it before things turned bad, but one deferred his start date in order to help the company out. The other 2 were owed some of their money. Even if you suspect the boss is an eejit there's often a desire to stay and help your colleagues and friends out as much as possible, which is a risk I admit.
The comment about amounts is a bit daft. One month's salary is a fair old whack especially if it's part of your budget. For some of the pilots there were several K in expenses as well, built up over a longer period. On top of which some people took quite a while finding another job and some have not found one. That can start hurting quite quickly.