Victoria's Small Business Minister has been forced to resign over bullying allegations but he wants the deputy premier to go down with him to "save the government".
Adem Somyurek resigned after a report found he grabbed his chief of staff Dimity Paul by the arm and chin, and sacked a staff member who stood up for her.
But the upper house MP denied all allegations and said they were part of a union plot to get back at him for leaving the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association.
"We knew there would be payback; we had no idea this payback would be so extreme," Mr Somyurek told reporters on Tuesday.
Premier Daniel Andrews said Mr Somyurek had been "inappropriate" with his staff and had to resign from the ministry.
"Rightly, appropriately, he has paid a very heavy price," Mr Andrews said.
In a press conference, Mr Somyurek said SDA boss Michael Donovan had too much influence on deputy premier James Merlino and the premier's chief of staff John McLindon.
"We need to save the government, because if we don't tackle this issue right here of undue influence from outside, we'll be a one-term government," Mr Somyurek said.
Mr Somyurek called on Mr Merlino and Mr McLindon to step aside, and accused Mr McLindon of orchestrating the bullying allegations against him.
He also slammed former County Court judge Michael Strong, who put the report together.
"Strong has a chequered history, let's be honest about that," he said.
"He hasn't been a County Court judge for a long time, he's relied on government employment for a very long time."
Ms Paul said she hesitated reporting her boss because she did not want to be seen as a victim.
"For months I attempted to cope with the conduct," Ms Paul told reporters.
"However, when a colleague who stood up for me was asked not to return to work by the minister, I decided I had to say something."
Mr Somyurek said he supported the premier and he would stay in the Labor Party but said he had spoken to caucus colleagues who "absolutely" agreed the SDA had too much influence.
Opposition Leader Matthew Guy said the government appeared to be "at war with itself".
HOW IT UNFOLDED
* February: Adem Somyurek argues with SDA boss Michael Donovan over his "meddling" in parliament.
* April: Mr Somyurek splits from the SDA faction, forming his own parliamentary group with other ex-SDA MPs.
* May: His SDA-aligned chief-of-staff Dimity Paul says he bullied her; the premier's SDA-aligned chief-of-staff John McLindon handles the complaint. Mr Somyurek is stood down pending an investigation.
* July: Mr Somyurek is forced to resign after the report finds he grabbed the arm and chin of Ms Paul and sacked someone who stood up for her. He denies all allegations and claims he is the victim of an SDA revenge plot.
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