High-frequency workforce activity data from payroll tracking firm Ultimate Kronos Group (UKG) shows that September shift work declined for the second month in a row, casting a shadow over Friday’s closely-watched government report that will reveal how many jobs the U.S. economy created last month. UKG’s workforce activity report, released Oct. 5, showed that September shift work fell 0.1 percent. While a marked improvement over August’s drop of 2.4 percent, the shift contraction suggests further delays in the employment recovery and sets the stage for a potential downside miss in Friday’s government jobs report, which last month came in well below expectations. “By most predictions, September was supposed to bring a return of strong economic and workplace activity, as schools reopened fully and unemployment benefits expired. This simply wasn’t the case,” Dave Gilbertson, Vice President of UKG, said in a statement. Gilbertson said it’s likely that concerns about health amid the …