Confusion and fear has gripped many immigrant communities across the US as the Trump administration acts on its promise of mass migrant deportations.

As a result, some immigrants have reported being too fearful to leave home, in some cases even for work. Their absences have created disruptions for several businesses. In California’s Central Valley, for example, the citrus harvest nearly grinded to a halt last month after some migrant farmworkers—who make up the bulk of US farm labor—didn’t show up for work.

It’s becoming a top immigration-related concern for HR leaders. “I think that’s been one of the largest issues that we’ve been dealing with, besides actual increased immigration enforcement, is the fallout or the perception of what this could be doing to the workforce,” Sean McCrory, a shareholder at law firm Littler who previously served as an assistant chief counsel for ICE, told HR Brew.

HR leaders are also expecting immigrant workers’ mental health to take a hit. Nearly half (47%) of HR leaders surveyed by Gartner following the US election said they expected the psychological safety of employees on visas to suffer in response to immigration regulation changes. This concern over psychological safety could extend beyond employees on visas, though.

Keep reading here.—PM

Think back to a stressful time in your life. Do the hours you spent vying for post-grad jobs come to mind? For many of today’s undergrads, it likely will.

New research from Handshake—based on a survey of more than 6,000 college students and recent graduates, as well as job requisition and application data from its platform—found that internships have a significant impact on college students’ career plans. But many face challenges accessing internships.

Impressions matter. Nearly all (96%) respondents who completed an internship said it impacted their understanding of their career goals, and 80% said it influenced their industry and job preferences. Some 79% said their internship impacted their interest in working full-time at an organization, with 56% saying they would, or maybe would, accept a full-time offer.

Finance is a big barrier. It’s not enough to just be paid. While most internships are paid nowadays, with 74% of respondents receiving direct compensation during their program, the level of compensation influenced their perception of their employer. The majority (80%) of respondents who felt fairly compensated said they’d accept a job offer from their internship company, compared to 63% of those who did not feel fairly compensated.

Keep reading here.—PM

Google’s Gemini model made headlines last year when it produced pictures of racially diverse people in Nazi uniforms, among other historically incoherent imagery.

While the episode fueled culture wars around “wokeness” online, Stanford University researcher Angelina Wang and her team saw it as an example of a bigger problem with how generative AI researchers treat algorithmic bias. Many of the metrics developers use to make models more fair strive for racial colorblindness or other identical treatment, which can sometimes ignore contexts where group differences do matter.

That’s why Wang and her co-authors at Stanford’s Institute for Human-Centered AI (HAI) have developed a new benchmark suite aimed to test difference awareness in AI models, consisting of eight scenarios and 16,000 multiple choice questions.

Keep reading on Tech Brew.—PK

Culture is everything, but are your efforts paying off? On Feb. 27, Dayforce will reveal new research on the pitfalls of ineffective culture strategies. Join us for insights and an expert panel discussing what works—and why culture can’t wait.