The council hopefuls gathered outside Latrobe City's Morwell offices on Monday to promise that if elected, they would scrap the hard waste voucher system and reinstate a service funded by municipal rates.

The commitment was made by candidates Sharon Gibson, Merv Geddes, David Taylor, Craig McIver, Bill Barber and Dale Harriman, who stacked hands while stating the pledge.

``As a candidate in the Latrobe council election I pledge publicly that, if elected, I will take immediate action to repeal the unpopular, failed hard rubbish voucher and user-pays system imposed on us by the past council,'' each candidate stated.

``I will support returning to a hard rubbish collection service paid out of our general rates.

``My pledge is demonstration of my commitment to serve the community and to act as a councillor for the benefit of all Latrobe's citizens.''

Ms Gibson, who is running for Merton ward, was a representative on the working committee which was given the task of finding the best option for a hard waste system.

A controversial $24 voucher system was implemented and later scrapped in favour of a temporary user-pays service.

Ms Gibson claims she was ``ignored'' while on the committee.

``I tried for months on the committee to get a kerbside hard rubbish service back for the community.'' she said.

``It would give me huge satisfaction to repeal the highly unsatisfactory service council gave us and give us a full kerbside hard rubbish collection, paid for out of our general rates.

``That's where the money has always been for it and we got no reduction in our rates when it ceased.''

Mr Barber said hard waste was probably the most important matter for people in the municipality.

``This is probably the first time since amalgamation that the whole of the region, Traralgon, Moe, Morwell, Churchill, everybody is together on a subject,'' he said.

``It's a matter that does affect everybody.

``I think hard rubbish is the day of reckoning that's going to happen and I think it's going to have a big effect on the vote for people like myself that are standing.''

The Gunyah ward candidate said the issue had united the six candidates.

``It was no problem for us all to get together and talk about it today for the simple reason it is something we feel pretty passionate about,'' Mr Barber said.

Dunbar ward candidate, Mr Harriman said a kerbside hard waste collection was what the majority of people wanted.

``I can't stand by when the majority of people want hard rubbish collection and they want it for free,'' he said.

``Council didn't want to do it for WorkSafe, but then you can get it done for a $50 fee says to me that you can get it done anyway.

``I'm making this pledge that if I am elected, it comes back as the majority of people want it to come back.''

Mr Harriman said if the candidates who made the pledge were elected, it would result in a majority vote and the service could be reintroduced.

``I think that shows the people that we're committed to it and by making the pledge, it will go through and I think people will hold us to that pledge,'' he said.

Mr Taylor, who is running in the Farley ward, said making the pledge was part of a bigger push to overthrow eight of the nine current councillors.

``Hard rubbish is one thing, but the real guts of the thing now is for a change in council,'' he said.

``The pledge is really heavily connected to that.''

Fellow Farley ward candidate, Mr McIver, said the fact that candidates from five different wards had participated in the pledge showed each was committed to bringing the kerbside hard waste service back.

``It shows there is a united front in regards to everything going on,'' he said.

Mr Geddes said although hard waste was not an issue for him personally, he knew it was of concern to some Rintoull ward ratepayers and council candidates.

``I'm here to support the people who are making the declaration,'' he said.

``I also want to make it clear the voucher system was not due to the community representatives, it was purely a council decision and I think that decision was a revenue grabber.''

Moe and District Residents Association (MADRA) representative Cheryl Wragg was witness to the pledge.

``We think the pledge itself that has been made by the candidates is very important and it is something that the community can hold these candidates to account if they are elected,'' she said.

Latrobe City CEO Paul Buckley would not comment on the actions of the candidates.

Mr Buckley said council currently provided a hard waste service for those who wanted to use it, where people could phone to book the service at a reduced cost of $20 or $10 for pensioners and health care card holders.

He said there would be a free hard waste weekend for residents in December and council was waiting to be presented with information from WorkSafe before setting guidelines for a future hard waste service.