Analytical Paleontology Technician

Important messages

We are committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free work environment, starting with the hiring process. If you need to be accommodated during any phase of the evaluation process, please use the Contact information below to request specialized accommodation. All information received in relation to accommodation will be kept confidential.

Assessment accommodation

Screening questions have been built into the application process, when answering the screening questions you must provide concrete and detailed examples to clearly demonstrate how you meet the qualification. We can’t make any assumptions about your experience. Simply saying you have the required qualifications or listing your current duties is not enough. Instead, provide concrete and detailed examples that clearly explain where, when, and how you gained the experience. We’ll only use your résumé as a secondary source of information. The breadth and depth of experience may be considered during screening, assessment and/or selection of candidates.

The Government of Canada is committed to building a skilled workforce that is representative of Canada's diversity, which includes the recruitment of Canadian Veterans and releasing Canadian Armed Forces personnel: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-service-commission/jobs/services/public-service-jobs/canadian-armed-forces-members-veterans.html.
We encourage applicants to identify any abilities, competencies, and/or experiences acquired through employment with the Canadian Armed Forces where applicable.

Duties

The Analytical Paleontology Technician manages operations of the paleontology research laboratories at the Geological Survey of Canada – Calgary facility. They are required to work independently to process geologic samples for palynomorph, conodont, and foraminiferal analysis. They are responsible for overseeing contracts and collaborations, sample throughput, and procurement schedules to ensure the smooth operation of the labs. The technician is occasionally required to conduct research, under the guidance of research scientists, to develop new laboratory techniques and approaches to innovate and maintain relevancy of Natural Resources Canada’s laboratories. They will adhere to established standard operating procedures and health and safety policies to maintain the safe operation of the laboratories. The ideal candidate will be an organized, meticulous worker with strong teamwork and adaptability skills.

Work environment

At Natural Resources Canada, a Federal government job means developing leadership skills, fostering teamwork, and supporting creativity and innovation. We know it takes people from diverse pools of talent to make this happen. That is why we are looking for people like you. As an employee at Natural Resources Canada you can enjoy diverse employment opportunities, a range of career development programs, and a learning culture that supports you to learn on an ongoing basis. To the extent possible, we support balancing your work and private life by offering the benefits of flexible work arrangements.

Intent of the process

The immediate need is to staff one (1) determinate (temporary) 18 month position at the EG-04 group and level, located in Calgary, Alberta, starting as soon as possible.

A pool of fully or partially qualified candidates may be established through this process to staff identical or similar positions at the EG-04 group and level within the Geological Survey of Canada - Calgary Division, at Natural Resources Canada, with various tenures (determinate period or permanent), various linguistic requirements (imperative and/or non-imperative), language requirements (English Essential, French Essential, English or French Essential and Bilingual) and profiles (BBB/BBB, CBC/CBC, CCC/CCC, etc.), various security requirements (Reliability Status, Secret), and with various conditions of employment.

Positions to be filled: 1

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

• Graduation from a recognized university, college or technical institute with a scientific degree or diploma, or an acceptable combination of education, training or experience.

Note: An acceptable combination is defined as a high school diploma and approximately 2 years of working experience in a laboratory.

Degree equivalency

• Experience operating or maintaining scientific equipment.
• Experience preparing samples for laboratory analysis.
• Experience using Microsoft® Office Word and Excel.

Note: Experience must have been achieved through a working environment and not simply through a course or an educational program; Co-op and/or Internship work terms are included as work experience.

If you possess any of the following, your application must also clearly explain how you meet it (other qualifications)

• Graduation from a recognized university, college or technical institute with a scientific degree or diploma in Earth sciences which includes courses on paleontology.

Degree equivalency

• Approximately 2 years of experience operating and/or maintaining scientific equipment.
• Experience using laboratory information systems (LIMS) software.
• Experience processing microfossil samples and analyzing micropaleontological data.
• Experience budgeting, overseeing supply chains, and procuring goods.

Note: Experience must have been achieved through a working environment and not simply through a course or an educational program; Co-op and/or Internship work terms are included as work experience.

• Willingness to work in a laboratory in the presence of chemicals and periodic noise.
• Willingness to use tools and other mechanical equipment.
• Willingness and ability to lift (sometimes heavy) rock samples and trays of samples.
• Willingness to participate in sample collection onsite and offsite, potentially including at field worksites.

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

English essential

Information on language requirements

• Knowledge of health and safety regulations for laboratories.
• Knowledge of basic principles of sample management using inventory databases.
• Knowledge of quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) of scientific data.

• Ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing.
• Ability to work independently or unsupervised on projects.
• Ability to establish priorities, meet deadlines and manage multi-disciplinary services.
• Ability to identify and analyse problems, and recommend viable solutions.
• Ability to prepare samples and perform standard chemical and physical analyses with precision and accuracy.
• Ability to assess suitability of sample material and select appropriate laboratory procedures.
• Excellent hand-eye coordination, dexterity, and fine motor skills required to prepare materials for analysis.

• Dependability
• Initiative
• Team player
• Thoroughness
• Adaptability

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

• Knowledge of sampling methodologies and processing techniques of geologic samples for fossil preparation.
• Knowledge of government or academic research organizations and practices.

• Ability to summarize and communicate scientific information orally and in writing.

Natural Resources Canada is committed to establishing and maintaining a representative workforce. This organizational need may be identified as part of the appointment decision. In such cases, qualified candidates who self-declare as members of a visible minority group, Aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities or women could be considered in priority.

Information on employment equity

Conditions of employment

Reliability Status security clearance

Other information

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the designated groups when you apply.

Information on employment equity

For this selection process, it is our intention to communicate with candidates via email; this will include invitations to interviews. To that end, candidates must include a valid email address in their application. It is the candidate's responsibility to ensure that this address is functional and that it accepts messages from unknown users (some email systems block these types of email). It is also the candidate's responsibility to ensure accurate information is provided and updated as required.

All information obtained throughout the selection process, from the time of application to close of process, may be used to evaluate the candidates.

You must provide proof of your education credentials. Candidates with foreign credentials must provide proof of Canadian equivalency. Consult the Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials for further information at http://www.cicic.ca/.

Reference checks may be sought.

An interview may be conducted.

A written examination may be administered.

Candidates must meet the essential qualifications to be appointed to a position.

Candidates may be required to meet the other qualifications, depending on the requirements of the specific position being staffed.

Random selection and/or top-down selection may be used at any time during the process to identify which applicants will be further assessed.

Persons are entitled to participate in the appointment process in the official language of their choice. Applicants are asked to indicate their preferred official language in their application.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans first and then to Canadian citizens and permanent residents, with the exception of a job located in Nunavut, where Nunavut Inuit will be appointed first.

Information on the preference to veterans

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.