Death is a lot of work

While Max is traveling for The Real News Network, “Working People” producer Jules Taylor makes his host debut by interviewing his stepfather Ric Ortiz about his career as a death investigator and paramedic. In a way, it feels like Ric was meant to work around death—he grew up across the street from a cemetery and his first job involved assisting a local gravedigger before he was 10 years old. He would go on to work as the chief medical investigator for Nueces County, Texas, for 20 years. In this special episode, Jules speaks with Ric about the events in his life that shaped his career path, and they discuss how working around death influences the way one sees the world.