Correct. If you tolerate, if you blindly allow, if you accept without action - you implicitly endorse.

I remember a time 10 years ago when a flight attendant harassed a person behind me unfairly. I regret not standing up for that person.

Don't be a bystander - do the right thing!

Easy to say, and I mostly agree, but it can be tough. I've seen a few of these cases of bully management and what you notice is that the team under the manager (and the teams around the manager) all already realize and communicate (sometimes just glances, sometimes quite openly) that the manager is a problem. So making a dramatic exit to make a point sometimes only makes an obvious point.

There are other factors too. Maybe you have a unique skillset and it takes some time to find similar employment, maybe you stay for family reasons, or for a (probably misguided) sense of loyalty to the team. In my last relevant personal experience, it was obviously a hostile work environment fairly early on but I had made an informal commitment to stay on for X amount of time when I joined.

Abusive managers often actually score big wins in short order and garner favor from higher management, but inevitably we see those managers burn out the systems they build and the systems around them. Employees start bouncing out at an accelerating pace and it's a compounding effect usually because an already overtaxed team is now smaller and has to pick up the slack of the departed.

It usually ends badly.

Which of course factors back into the decision not to make a public display of an exit -- karma usually finds a way to sort these things out.

I think it's probably the case that a lot of these managers are completely oblivious to their actions. I had one manager who proudly claimed (to the team) knowledge of sneaky political tactics and posted articles on fb about Machiavelli and corporate tactics for grabbing and wielding power. It's quite an awkward thing to watch and they're usually not fooling anybody.

Walking out instantly is a romantic idea for people who either have fat bank accounts to fall back on or little-to-no responsibility outside of work to worry about. For the rest of us something like that is indeed a reason to immediately seek other employment, but just because you don't walk out instantly doesn't mean you are supporting that behavior.

You mean people like extremely well-paid developers with in-demand skills who get contacted by recruiters multiple times a week?

I am all of those things and I still can't just stand up and walk out. I have a wife, 2 kids and a house payment to think about. Prudence demands that I line up future employment before giving my current employer the finger.

Absolutism is counterproductive. There are millions of people who care about the environment but still use cars, electricity, shipping, and air travel to work towards making the world better for everyone.

Being an absolutist many times can lead to you only feeling smugly superior while not really making a difference.

Don't do nothing​ leaves you will the whole spectrum of possible action except the worst

Huh? Sure, the employee could sit through the CEO taking a dump on them in front of their coworkers, but if the employee has other options for employment, I'd say there isn't a usually solid reason to stick around a hostile work environment.

The bridge is already burned with the CEO, and your unlikely to burn the bridge any worse with your direct boss/coworkers by quiting immediately versus a few days/a week later. Might actually gain some respect from them which could net you a job later down the line at another firm one of your coworkers ends up at!

That being said, its all corporate politics, so it is hard to derisk it, and you should try to be aware of as much of the political situation as possible before making a move.

Edit: added last paragraph to clarify.

I'm not talking about the CEO's victim. I'm talking about every employee that watched him victimize a team member.

Ah, that makes more sense, was trying to figure that out. I've usually waited a bit before quitting so I could line up a new job when I've been an employee witnessing a coworker get beat down on by management needlessly.

There must be 50 ways to leave your lover.

If you've made up your mind, you can just tell them off and walk out. You can take your sweet time and interview while you still have a paycheck and benefits. You can wait until the cliff and leave the next day. You can give two weeks notice.

It's your choice just as it's their choice.

Last company I left I did working till the last minute, on my own unpaid time. I've been treated so well and we shared such a strong spirit of unity in the good and bad times that I can't regret it. No body was ever bullied. Main difference with other tech companies I worked for before:

CEO is a woman.

Actually flies in the face of my own anecdotal experience.

CEO is a woman.

why downvote? this is just some anecdotal data provided. no strong claims, no offensive phrases.

Definitely, there are a ton of ways to end a relationship, whether it be an employment relationship or social one. I prefer short & definitive endings myself, so long as I'm ready for it to end.

Letting a bad relationship hang on is just bad for my health, I gain a ton of weight and stress!

This is precisely why I quit my job two jobs ago. The CEO yelled at one of my coworkers (for something petty) and made her cry in front of the entire company. I had a job interview scheduled for the next Monday before the end of the day. It took another 10 or so days before I actually quit, but they did not get a two weeks notice.