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Equal rights for women,
By Stephanie Kendrick
from surfboard to
boardroom
Star-BulletinPATTI Paniccia the pro surfer and Patti Paniccia the author both championed women's rights. When Paniccia's family moved to Waialua from Southern California in the mid-'60s, the adolescent was miserable about the move, according to her mother, Mary Paniccia. Then she fell in love with surfing.
Paniccia was among the first batch of women pro surfers. "Even then it seems I was fighting for women's rights," said Paniccia, as the wahine lobbied for pay equal to male surfers'. "I guess that's where I got my first taste of disparities," she said.
Her next taste came much later when CNN replaced her as a TV reporter in its L.A. Bureau because she'd chosen to have a second child.
In 1993, Paniccia had been working for CNN for four years and had never balked at working holidays and weekends, even after the birth of her first child. Her dedication to the job made the treatment she received that much more of a shock. "It was really a double whammy," she said. "I thought I had my career really well established."
BOOK SIGNING
What: Patti Paniccia will sign "Work Smarts for Women: The Essential Sex Discrimination Survival Guide"
She filed suit against the corporation and settled with CNN in 1996. Details of the settlement have been kept confidential, but it was not the end of Paniccia's story.
Ballantine Publishing Group recently released her book "Work Smarts for Women: The Essential Sex Discrimination Survival Guide," which is designed to be the resource she didn't have when she faced discrimination at CNN.
Although school was not a priority for Paniccia while she was on the pro circuit, she eventually received a bachelor's degree in communication from the University of Hawaii and went on to earn a degree from Pepperdine Law School.
She chose not to practice law, instead pursuing a career as a TV news reporter, but she said she could not have written the book without her legal training.
In fact, she drew on her legal background, journalism skills and personal experience to write "Work Smarts for Women."
Her students also helped. Since leaving CNN, Paniccia has taught a class in gender and the law at Pepperdine. "I thank my students for making me become an expert," she said.
The book covers all types of sex discrimination, some of which seem caused by a lack of empathy in the workplace.
Paniccia tells a story about being in a meeting at a Fortune 500 company. As the meeting was about to start, a call came through from one of the men who was supposed to be there. A traffic accident was delaying him. A murmur of sympathy went around the room. Everyone could identify with being held hostage on the freeway.
Moments later, a second call came through. This time it was the only other woman who was supposed to be at the meeting. Her son was sick and she would be in as soon as she'd dropped him off at his doctor's office, where she'd arranged for her baby sitter to meet him. No sympathy this time. In fact, one executive suggested to her boss that he might want to talk to the woman about her priorities.
That's sex discrimination. Both employees were late to the meeting due to situations beyond their control, but the man's excuse seemed valid because the others could identify with his problem.
While one way to end sex discrimination in the workplace is education, Paniccia said many employers are focused on the wrong lessons.
"Companies aren't learning how not to discriminate, they're learning how not to get caught," said Paniccia.
"Employers are preparing in advance for these complaints," she said. And while that in itself is not bad, employees should be armed with similar protection. "(The book) sort of levels the playing field so women themselves can understand," she said.
Paniccia recommends women use a company's complaint system, even though they might fear retribution. But understanding the company's perspective in the complaint system is critical, said Paniccia. The company's goal is to minimize harm to the organization, she said. "As long as you understand how the system works, you can be successful at it."
Mary Paniccia isn't surprised at the success her daughter has found, despite setbacks.
"I knew she had it in her to do whatever she wanted," she said. "Surfers have to have this certain discipline. They get up early."
Becky Benson Turner, who surfed with Paniccia in the pros, was likewise not surprised.
"I've always known that she's very intelligent," she said. People might miss that, said Turner, in light of Paniccia's outgoing personality.
Missy Pasqual Mock, who worked with Paniccia at the Haleiwa Surf Center in the 1970s, echoed Turner's assessment of their friend's intelligence and drive. "She's fought for a lot of the things she's earned," she said.
Paniccia also credits surfing with helping her to deal with challenges. "Of all the things on my resume, I think the most difficult was surfing," she said. "To surf at that level was definitely the greatest challenge."
Some people have advised her to take her surfing accomplishments off her resume, but she refuses to do so.
A lawyer friend who seemed to understand once commented "When you've faced real sharks I guess the corporate ones aren't that scary."
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