BC Nurse Fired Over Gender Comments Files Human Rights Case Against Employer, Regulatory College

Amy Hamm, a nurse from Vancouver, is seen in a file photo. Courtesy of Amy Hamm/JCCF

A B.C. nurse fired for gender-related comments and found to have committed professional misconduct has filed human rights complaints against her former employer and the nurses’ regulatory college, claiming discrimination based on her political beliefs.

Amy Hamm filed two complaints with the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal, one against the British Columbia College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM) and another against her former employer, Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH), according to a July 21 press release by the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, which provided lawyers to represent Hamm in both matters.

A disciplinary panel from the BCCNM ruled in March that Hamm had engaged in professional misconduct after making “discriminatory” and “derogatory” comments toward members of the transgender community on platforms such as podcasts, videos, and social media between 2018 and 2021, while identifying as a nurse or nurse educator, according to a March 13 decision.

Hamm’s lawyer, Lisa Bildy, argues the college’s decision appears to be part of a trend of regulatory bodies infringing on human rights by “using their power to ‘discipline and enforce a particular worldview–in this case, gender ideology.’”

The college began its investigation in November 2020, following public complaints over Hamm’s involvement in a Vancouver billboard in September 2020 that read “I [love] JK Rowling.” The British author has voiced support for sex-based rights, including women’s access to female-only spaces such as prisons, crisis centres, restrooms, changerooms, and sporting events.

In the panel’s March 13 decision, Hamm is quoted as saying she shared Rowling’s concerns “about the impact of gender identity and ideology on the rights of women and girls.”

In some articles and a podcast analyzed by the panel, Hamm expressed the view that there are only two sexes, that humans cannot change their sex, and that these facts ought to inform public policies affecting the safety and privacy of females.

The panel concluded that Hamm’s statements were “for the most part, untruthful and unfair as they challenge the existence of transgender women, argue for less constitutional protection for transgender women, and are designed, in part, to elicit fear, contempt and outrage against members of the transgender community.”

The college called the disciplinary panel’s decision an “important statement against discrimination.”

“The college will continue to stand up against discrimination and believes it is a core aspect of our public protection mandate to ensure nurses uphold the important principle that the health care system is non-discriminatory,” read a March 13 public notice by the BCCNM.

Hamm is also appealing the panel’s decision before the B.C. Supreme Court, arguing that views on sex, gender, and gender identity should not be exempt from questioning, and that it is not the job of a regulatory body to determine which belief systems are “off limits.”

In response to the human rights complaint, the regulatory college said it would follow the legal process.

“Every British Columbian is free to file a complaint with the Human Rights Tribunal,” the college’s spokesperson Shruti Ashok told The Epoch Times in a statement.

“BCCNM will respond and follow the Human Rights Tribunal process if and when Ms. Hamm’s complaint is accepted.”

The second human rights complaint was filed against VCH, which terminated Hamm’s employment in March–a decision she says was motivated by discrimination against her political beliefs. Hamm was suspended from her job in May 2024, following a campaign against her led by other VCH employees. 

VCH declined to comment on the human rights complaint, with spokesperson Jeremy Deutsch telling The Epoch Times that the health authority is unable to comment on ongoing legal matters.

According to the JCCF, VCH justified its decision to terminate Hamm by saying her views on gender caused “harm to individuals” and could damage the organization’s reputation

Hamm is seeking reinstatement, a public apology, a declaration that she was discriminated against, and monetary compensation.