Nearly all of the workers who were forced out of work during Gwinner Bobcat's largest layoff in decades will return to work by June 4, the company says.

In January, the plant lost 141 workers:63 took voluntary severance packages, and 78 were laid off, said Tom Ricker, president of the United Steelworkers Local 560 in Gwinner. That brought the work force down to 921, he said.

But just a couple of weeks after the layoffs, which Ricker said were the biggest he'd seen since the '70s, the company began asking a few workers to come back, said Todd Woodward with labor relations at the plant.

Most of the 78 who were involuntarily released were back at work by May 1, Woodward said. A few more will return by June 4.

Woodward said he could not comment on whether there would be any more planned layoffs throughout the summer.

Ricker said that, since January, the plant has amassed more than 4,000 back orders. Sales have increased slightly, putting a strain on the depleted work force; there were two to three mandatory working Saturdays in March and two in April, he said.

A lot of workers also were working voluntary and mandatory overtime, he said.

Fargo-based Bobcat, known for its skid-steer loaders, is under the umbrella of parent company Ingersoll-Rand Co. Ltd. The company had attributed the February layoffs to a decline in overall sales.

The plant in Bismarck didn't have any involuntary layoffs, said human resources manager Jim Flynn. About 25 people took voluntary severance at the end of January, he said. Bobcat in Bismarck is looking to hire about 70 temporary workers for the summer.

"Ihope they've kind of learned their lesson a little bit. We've seen times in the past where sales are a little slow,"Ricker said, adding that the union had suggested offering voluntary severance or early retirement packages as opposed to involuntary layoffs.

Woodward said he could not comment on whether there were more layoffs planned in the future.

(Reach reporter Crystal R. Reid at 250-8261 or at crystal.reid@;bismarck-tribune.com.)