ANIMAL ATTENDANT (2X POSTS)
(Payclass 05; 20 hours per week)
RESEARCH ANIMAL FACILITY
FACULTY OF HEALTH SCIENCES
UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN
The UCT Research Animal Facility (RAF) invites applications from suitably qualified and experienced candidates for these half-day permanent positions, two General Animal Attendants to appointment on pay class 5 working 20 hours per week. The main purpose of this position is to provide animal care and husbandry on a rotational basis in the different Laboratory animal areas of the UCT Centre for Animal Research, to maintain the required animal health and welfare standard and to maintain the highest level of care of the animals in the facility on a daily basis.
Requirements:
• Grade 12 school qualifications
• 6-12 months proven practical experience working in a rodent laboratory animal facility or in a veterinary practice as an animal attendant or comparable relevant experience.
• Ability to work in commitment to quality management principles, diligently, responsibly, effectively and unsupervised according to Standard Operating Procedures and South African Veterinary Council (SAVC) guidelines.
• Ability to work in a team and interact smoothly with the Line-Manager and other staff in the facility.
• Competency in reading, writing and understanding English.
• Ability to keep detailed and accurate records.
• Ability to maintain an organised workflow.
• Adhere strictly to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) i.e showering into Specified Pathogen Free facility.
• Willingness to work on alternate weekends and some public holidays.
Advantageous:
• Experience working with individually ventilated cages, isolators, biosafety cabinets and laminar flows.
• Demonstrated competency to handle, restrain and perform applicable minor procedures on mice
• Biology at grade ten or matric level with any qualifications in Laboratory animal science or authorisation with the SAVC to perform Para veterinary laboratory animal procedures.
• Basic knowledge of Microsoft word to read and write short e-mails, to search and do basic capturing on an excel database.
• A driver’s license.
Responsibilities include:
• Provide daily animal care, husbandry and appropriate bio-exclusion and or inclusion of infectious organisms, to all animals behind barriers, i.e. in the Specified Pathogen Free (SPF) breeding unit or in biosafety level 2 & 3 experimental areas in individually ventilated cage systems and/or in sterile positive pressure breeding isolators.
• Maintain the physical animal house environment and of the adjacent work areas.
• Maintain animal welfare, and SPF health standards.
• Perform tasks related to breeding programmes.
• Issue animals for research,
• Perform and assist with tasks relating to reproduction biotechnology.
• Comply with all SAVC regulations.
• Maintain detailed (auditable for quality assurance) records on animal welfare, husbandry, care and related operational general SPF management and equipment monitoring and maintenance, in line with the Quality management system in place.
• The job carries the responsibility to adhere strictly to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to maintain the highest level of care of the animals in the facility on a daily basis.
The annual remuneration package is negotiable between R 89,357.5 and R 105,125 (+ 3 hours Saturday & 3 hours Sunday overtime every second weekend and on some public holidays).
To apply, please e-mail the below documents in a single pdf file to Siziwe Xozwa at Siziwe.Xozwa@uct.ac.za
– UCT Application Form (download at http://forms.uct.ac.za/hr201.doc)
– Cover letter, and
– Curriculum Vitae (CV)
Please ensure the title and reference number are indicated in the subject line. An application which does not comply with the above requirements will be regarded as incomplete. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and may be required to undergo a competency test and pre-employment medical screening.
Telephone: 021 404 7752 Website: http://www.health.uct.ac.za/
Reference number: E91201 Closing date: 18 December 2019
UCT is committed to the pursuit of excellence, diversity and redress in achieving its equity targets. Our Employment Equity Policy is available at http://www.uct.ac.za/downloads/uct.ac.za/about/policies/eepolicy.pdf
UCT reserves the right not to appoint.
