For 75 years, Charles River employees have worked together to assist in the discovery, development and safe manufacture of new drug therapies. When you join our family, you will have a significant impact on the health and well-being of people across the globe. Whether your background is in life sciences, finance, IT, sales or another area, your skills will play an important role in the work we perform. In return, we’ll help you build a career that you can feel passionate about.
Job Summary
We are seeking an Operational Technician for our Flexible Operational department located in Tranent.
This is an exciting opportunity to join a newly created department within Charles River Laboratories. The department aims to allow technicians to gain a wide variety of skills, experience and knowledge in various operating areas, from Formulations to Necropsy. The Flexible Operational team will be equipped with the skills and competencies to support the entire technical operation. As an Operational Technician, no two days will be the same and you will work across many different departments, doing a wide variety of tasks and working with colleagues from across the operation.
The following are responsibilities related to the position but not limited to;
* Deploy to support peaks in operational workload across multiple functional departments.
* Supporting formulating and dispensing test items for use in scientific studies
* Delivering essential care to Laboratory animals including husbandry duties
* The administration of regulated procedures
* Documenting animal behaviour and clinical signs on relevant data systems.
* Management of lab equipment and apparatus including reporting equipment faults and competing relevant forms to resolve issues.
* Prepare study files, label pots, vials and assist with the set-up of scientific studies.
* To conduct quality control checks if required
* Carrying out necropsy procedure on laboratory animals
* Undertake relevant training across the division to be able to support key functions.
* Maintain required skills to allow flexible deployment as required on an ongoing basis.
* Comfortable working with a wide range of colleagues and teams across the business on a regular basis.
* Responsible for working towards obtaining a home office licence.
* Commit to working to an unpredictable work schedule, for example, vehicle preparation in formulations, room cleans in technical services and rodent necropsy over consecutive days.
* Maintain flexibility and adaptability in their day-to-day responsibilities.
The following are minimum requirements for external candidates related to the operational technician position:
* Minimum of five National 5 grades or equivalent
* Must be comfortable with changes to the working environment on a day to day basis
* Flexible and adaptive approach to suit the needs of the operation.
* Ability to communicate clearly and effectively with a wide range of colleagues.
* Ability to use initiative and take ownership for delivering tasks across the operation
* Demonstrated experience and commitment in working in a fast-paced environment
* Experience in a multi disciplinary role
The following are minimum requirements for experienced internal candidates:
* Track record of flexibility within Technical Operations, must have experience of a minimum of 2 departments within Tox Operations. (Necropsy, Slide Production, In – Vivo Operations, Dispensary).
* Experience of working in an unpredictable environment.
* Be willing to work across departments on any given day.
Salary for this position is £23842 - £27951 depending on skills and experience.
Closing date: 02 September 2025
Profile and Requirements
About Safety Assessment
Charles River is committed to helping our partners expedite their preclinical drug development with exceptional safety assessment services, state-of-the-art facilities and expert regulatory guidance. From individual specialty toxicology and IND enabling studies to tailored packages and total laboratory support, our deeply experienced team can design and execute programs that anticipate challenges and avoid roadblocks for a smooth, efficient journey to market. Each year approximately 300 investigational new drug (IND) programs are conducted in our Safety Assessment facilities.
About Charles River
Charles River is an early-stage contract research organization (CRO). We have built upon our foundation of laboratory animal medicine and science to develop a diverse portfolio of discovery and safety assessment services, both Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) and non-GLP, to support clients from target identification through preclinical development. Charles River also provides a suite of products and services to support our clients’ clinical laboratory testing needs and manufacturing activities. Utilizing this broad portfolio of products and services enables our clients to create a more flexible drug development model, which reduces their costs, enhances their productivity and effectiveness to increase speed to market.
With over 20,000 employees within 110 facilities in over 20 countries around the globe, we are strategically positioned to coordinate worldwide resources and apply multidisciplinary perspectives in resolving our client’s unique challenges. Our client base includes global pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies, government agencies and hospitals and academic institutions around the world.
At Charles River, we are passionate about our role in improving the quality of people’s lives. Our mission, our excellent science and our strong sense of purpose guide us in all that we do, and we approach each day with the knowledge that our work helps to improve the health and well-being of many across the globe. We have proudly supported the development of 80% of the drugs approved by the FDA in the last five years.
At Charles River Laboratories, we recognize and recruit all talent. We are a company committed to the principle of diversity and inclusion and work daily in this direction.