Cage Wash Technician

UC Irvine; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 36,000 - 41,000; Full time

Job summary

UC Irvine’s University Laboratory Animal Resources (ULAR) is hiring an Animal Care Technician. The role involves stocking ULAR facilities with clean cages, loading racks, washing, and preparing cages with bedding and feed for housing units on campus.

Responsibilities include moving heavy feed and cages, assisting with autoclaving, and performing basic cage maintenance. Training will be provided; weekend/holiday rotation may apply.

Qualifications

• High School or GED degree.
• At least 1 year of recent experience working in an environment with loading/unloading heavy items and/or sanitation.
• Valid California driver’s license to pick up/deliver items around the Irvine campus, and possibly drive to UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange.
• Ability to function effectively as a team member.
• Able to lift, push, pull and move items weighing up to 50 pounds.
• Ability to read, write and understand English sufficiently to follow instructions and written standard operating procedures.

Responsibilities

• Keep ULAR animal facilities supplied with clean animal cages (weighing around 4 pounds each).
• Load cage racks with 144+ animal cages and push racks through tunnel washers for washing.
• Load/unload cages for autoclave sterilization as needed.
• Prepare cages for use by adding bedding and feed after washing.
• Load hundreds of cages onto metal bulk trucks and transport to animal housing rooms.
• Move animal feed and bedding (bags up to 50 pounds).
• Clean and perform minor repairs of cage enclosures and related equipment.

Job description

Who We Are

Founded in 1965,

Founded in 1965, UC Irvine is a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities and is ranked among the nation’s top 10 public universities by U.S. News & World Report. The campus has produced five Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UC Irvine has more than 36,000 students and offers 224 degree programs. It’s located in one of the world’s safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County’s second-largest employer, contributing $7 billion annually to the local economy and $8 billion statewide. To learn more about UC Irvine, visit www.uci.edu. University Laboratory Animal Resources (ULAR) provides animal husbandry service and veterinary care to laboratory animals housed on campus for research, training or teaching. This includes meeting environmental and nutritional needs of a variety of animal species in accordance with established industry standards, state and federal rules and regulations, and ULAR's own standard operating procedures.

Your Role on the Team

This position involves keeping ULAR animal facilities supplied with clean animal cages (that can weigh around 4 pounds each). Incumbent will need to load cage racks with 144-plus animal cages, and push the racks through tunnel washers for washing. Some of the cages need to be sterilized through autoclave which also need to be loaded and unloaded. Once the cages and racks are washed, incumbent will prepare the cages for use by putting bedding and feed in the cages. Once prepared, hundreds of cages are loaded onto metal bulk trucks and transported to animal housing rooms. Incumbents will also need to move animal feed and bedding, with each bag weighing 50 pounds. Incumbent will be responsible for cleaning and minor repairs of cage enclosures and related ancillary equipment. ULAR will provide the necessary training to perform these duties.

What It Takes to be Successful

• High School or GED degree.
• At least 1 year of recent experience working in environment with, loading/unloading heavy items and/or sanitation.
• Valid California driver’s license, to pick up/deliver items around the Irvine campus, and possibly drive to/from the UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange.
• Ability to function effectively as a team member.
• Able to lift, push, pull and move items weighing up to 50 pounds.
• Ability to read, write and understand English sufficiently in order to follow given instructions and written standard operating procedures.

Preferred

• Prior experience working in laboratory environment involving animal research.
• At least 1 year of recent experience working in environment with loading/unloading heavy items and/or sanitation.

Special Conditions

• May be required to work weekends and holidays on rotation.
• Must wear protective clothing provided by ULAR (scrubs, masks, gloves, shoe covers, etc).
• Must attend technician training courses/meetings per ULAR’s discretion.
• Must participate in medical monitoring programs as prescribed by the Occupational Health and Safety Program. This may include preventive medical programs such as TB screening, tetanus booster, blood testing, immunizations, medical surveillance and others to meet the state, federal and UC requirements.
• Must be comfortable working alone in following conditions: constant exposure to possible allergens, including but not limited to animal waste, dirty bedding, animal hair, dander, dust, steam, in an enclosed, confined area with no direct access to open air.

Total Rewards

In addition to the salary range listed below, we offer a wealth of benefits to make working at UCI even more rewarding. These benefits may include medical insurance, sick and vacation time, retirement savings plans, and access to a number of discounts and perks. Please utilize the links listed here to learn more about our compensation practices and benefits. The expected pay range for this recruitment is $26.69 - $30.05 (Hourly).

Conditions Of Employment

• Background Check and Live Scan
• Employment Misconduct*
• Legal Right to work in the United States
• Vaccination Policies
• Smoking and Tobacco Policy
• Drug Free Environment
• Misconduct Disclosure Requirement: As a condition of employment, the final candidate who accepts a conditional offer of employment will be required to disclose if they have been subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct; received notice of any allegations or are currently the subject of any administrative or disciplinary proceedings involving misconduct; have left a position after receiving notice of allegations or while under investigation in an administrative or disciplinary proceeding involving misconduct; or have filed an appeal of a finding of misconduct with a previous employer.

The following additional conditions may apply, some of which are dependent upon business unit or job specific requirements.

• California Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act
• E-Verify
• Pre-Placement Health Evaluation

Details of each policy may be reviewed by visiting the following page - https://hr.uci.edu/new-hire/conditions-of-employment.php

Closing Statement

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected categories covered by the UC Anti-Discrimination Policy. We are committed to attracting and retaining a diverse workforce along with honoring unique experiences, perspectives, and identities. Together, our community strives to create and maintain working and learning environments that are inclusive, equitable, and welcoming. UCI provides reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities upon request. For more information, please contact Human Resources at [phone] or [e-mail].

Consideration for Work Authorization Sponsorship

Must be able to provide proof of work authorization