The Australian BioResources Facility, owned and operated by the Garvan, breeds high-quality laboratory mice for Garvan’s medical research programmes. This facility, based in Moss Vale in the Southern Highlands, uses advanced technology to provide an optimal environment for the production of high-quality animals for medical research.

THE OPPORTUNITY

The Animal Technician is a support role and the primary function is to provide for the care and maintenance of animals used in medical research and to indirectly support research staff involved in animal research.

The principal responsibilities of this position involve the breeding, maintenance and care of inbred and genetically modified mouse colonies within a cleanroom environment. The animal technician role is a physical role and does require standing for up to 2.5 hours at a time and keeping moving through the whole work day (7.6 hours)

This position adds value to the Garvan Institute by providing animal care services, to allow research staff to focus on scientific research outcomes. Effective and breakthrough scientific outcomes ultimately result in further funding success for Garvan's ultimate goal in prevention and treatment of disease.

Salary: $64,600 + 12% super + salary packaging

Employment Type: Permanent

SNAPSHOT OF BENEFITS

Generous salary packaging to save you income tax on your wages thereby boosting your monthly take home pay (max. $15,900 general expenses + $2,650 meals/accom)
Ample opportunities for on-going training and development
18 weeks paid parental leave for both parents including paid superannuation
A range of additional leave types to meet your personal needs including cultural leave, conference leave, community service and study leave
Discounted Health Insurance
Lifestyle discounts with our community partners

WHAT YOU WILL DO

The key responsibilities include:

Management of animal husbandry within a delegated area, duties include:
Adhere to Garvan’s Animal Ethics Monitoring Standards
Daily assessment and changing of animal cages (up to 350 cages within a day)
Routine cleaning to ensure required hygiene of animal rooms as per instructions and protocol requirements
Monitor and refill water and feed as per instructions and protocol requirements
Monitor animals and diligently report health or behavioural abnormalities to more senior animal care staff
Adhere to strict monitoring, welfare and husbandry procedures, checklists and ethical standards for the care of animals
Administrative responsibilities such as animal dispatch, animal arrivals, data entry regarding breeding, welfare, etc.
Weigh and administer medication to animals when requested by senior ABR staff and/or researchers. Follow instructions for the dilutions of drugs and chemicals.
Carry out basic manipulation techniques under supervision of senior trained staff, such as, injections, bleeding techniques, euthanasia, post mortems, administration of anaesthesia, minor surgery
Routine use and maintenance of equipment, such as anaesthetic machine, tail tattooing machine, balances, animal change station/biosafety cabinet, computer station and associated IT equipment
Actively communicate with and support ABR/BTF team members in a positive and helpful manner in order to maintain the welfare and ethical monitoring standards of the animals in your care
Maintain up to date skills and knowledge of ethical, monitoring policies, protocols and checklists
Strictly maintain confidentially and protection of Garvan’s research and operational procedures
Participate in ongoing professional development and training
Attend and proactively participate in team meetings
Be available to participate in shifts and work rosters covering weekends and public holidays
All staff are required to comply with Garvan’s workplace polices (as amended from time to time) and especially Garvan’s Work Health & Safety (WHS) Policy, including working in accordance with the WHS management system at all times, as safety is Garvan’s number one priority.

ABOUT YOU

Relevant TAFE qualifications in Animal Technology or equivalent is desired but not essential.
Possess a strong commitment to animal welfare and care
General experience in handling rodents is desirable but not essential (due to biosecurity issues, owning pet mice or rats at home is not permissible).
Basic knowledge of the husbandry, housing and breeding requirements of lab or other animals.
Excellent attention to detail and observational skills
Strong customer focus and commitment to quality
Good verbal and written communication skills
Basic computer skills
Reliability, patient and must be trustworthy
The ability to work individually or as a member of a group
Ability to organise own time
A professional and caring approach
Ability and motivation to develop new skills and learn new procedures
Escalation to Senior Animal Technician requires passing a skills and knowledge test.

ABOUT GARVAN

Garvan Institute of Medical Research is an independent Medical Research Institute (MRI) in Sydney, delivering scientific and clinical impact on a global basis and in partnership with organisations that share our vision. We are proud to be one of Australia’s largest and most highly regarded MRI’s.

Our vision is global leadership in discoveries to impact and our enduring purpose is to impact human health, by harnessing information encoded in our genome.

We seek to see our world-class discovery research achieve life-changing impacts, not only for individual patients with rare diseases, but for the many thousands affected by complex, common disease.

Garvan promotes a diverse workplace and is committed to the principles of equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging. We are always looking for culture ‘add’, not culture ‘fit’ and are building diverse teams with great sets of complementary styles and skills to help deliver our important work effectively.

HOW TO APPLY

To apply for this position, please submit your application with a CV and cover letter as one document, stating why you are interested in this role. We are reviewing applications as they are received. If you think you’re the right person for this role, we’d love to hear how your capabilities, achievements and experience set you apart. Only applicants with full working rights in Australia are eligible to apply for this role.