  Returning a system to a desired state under a force field involves a
thermodynamic cost, i.e., {\it work}. This cost fluctuates for a small-scale
system from one experimental realization to another. We introduce a general
framework to determine the work distribution for returning a system facilitated
by a confining potential with its minimum at the restart location. The general
strategy, based on average over {\it resetting pathways}, constitutes a robust
method to gain access to the statistical information of observables from
resetting systems. We exploit paradigmatic setups, where explicit computations
are attainable, to illustrate the theory. Numerical simulations validate our
theoretical predictions. For some of these examples, a non-trivial behavior of
the work fluctuations opens a door to optimization problems. Specifically, work
fluctuations can be minimized by an appropriate tuning of the return rate.
