Lab Aide
Helix
San Diego, CA, USA
USD 21-25 / hour + Equity
Posted on Aug 29, 2025
Lab Aide
San Diego, CA
Lab Operations
In office
Full-time
Who We Are & What We Do
At Helix, our mission is simple: to help everyone improve their lives through their DNA. Ready to make a real-world impact with your skills? At Helix, we're transforming healthcare by making genomics a standard of care. We partner with health systems and life science companies to accelerate the integration of genomic data into clinical practice. Join us in building a future where healthcare is personalized, proactive, and powered by genomics.
What is special about this role?
Join Helix's world-class, high-volume CAP/CLIA certified laboratory where transforming health organizations by weaving genomics into the fabric of healthcare. As a Lab Aide, you'll be at the forefront of our pre-analytical operations, working with a dynamic team that processes thousands of patient specimens daily. This role offers unique opportunities to challenge industry standards through innovative solutions. You'll gain hands-on clinical laboratory experience in a state-of-the-art facility while supporting the accessioning activities, plating procedures, and biohazardous waste program. With clear advancement pathways, you'll have the opportunity to grow from executing foundational tasks to becoming a subject matter expert and leader within the laboratory operations team.
As a Lab Aide, you will:
- Work onsite in our CAP/CLIA certified laboratory located in San Diego, CA
- Receive, unpack, and verify patient specimens against requisitions with high accuracy
- Perform specimen accessioning and data entry while maintaining sample integrity
- Identify and flag specimen issues such as missing information or incorrect sample types
- Execute plating procedures according to established protocols
- Operate automated equipment consistent with established protocols
- Support and maintain the biohazardous waste program in compliance with regulations
- Maintain a clean, organized laboratory and assist with general laboratory housekeeping
- Collaborate with team members to ensure efficient workflow in a fast-paced environment
- As you advance, take on additional responsibilities including training new staff, troubleshooting complex specimen issues, and contributing to process improvement initiatives
About you:
- Associate's degree in laboratory science or medical laboratory technology.
- Course work MUST include completion of 60 semester hours from an accredited institution with 24 semester hours of science courses (including 6 hours in chemistry, 6 hours in biology, and 12 hours in chemistry, biology, or medical lab technology).
- 0- 1 year of experience in a clinical laboratory or healthcare setting (Lab Aide I), academic experience will be considered.
- Proficient computer skills (Excel, Microsoft Word) with exceptional accuracy in data entry
- Strong attention to detail and organizational skills
- Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, team-oriented environment
- Understanding of patient confidentiality (HIPAA) requirements
- Developing knowledge of CAP and CLIA requirements
- Ability to follow established procedures and work under direct supervision
- Willingness to commit to a Tuesday through Saturday work schedule
Pluses:
- Bachelor’s degree in laboratory science or medical laboratory technology.
- Prior experience in a high-volume clinical laboratory setting
- Familiarity with laboratory information management systems (LIMS)
- Experience with biohazardous waste handling and disposal
- Knowledge of pre-analytical specimen processing best practices
- Demonstrated interest in process improvement and operational efficiency
- Experience working in regulated environments
- Strong problem-solving skills and ability to work independently on routine tasks
Expected Interview Process:
1) Recruiter Screen 2) Manager Screen 3) Onsite 4) Offer
Expected Pay For This Role:
There are 3 distinct parts to your Helix offer: 1) Base Salary 2) Annual Bonus 3) Equity
Expected Helix Base: $21 - $25/hour
Expected Helix Discretionary Annual Bonus: 5% of your annual salary
Equity: We offer generous equity at Helix. If you receive a Helix offer your recruiter will book dedicated time with you to educate you on our equity model.
The salary range above is our reasonable estimate of the base compensation for this role across US locations. Actual starting pay will be based on non-discriminatory job-related factors, including exact work location, experience, relevant training and education, and skill level. Your recruiter can share more about your specific work location salary range during the hiring process.
Aside from working alongside brilliant, dedicated, passionate, down-to-earth, curious, warm, and thoughtful people, we also provide great benefits:
- Comprehensive Health Insurance with Date of Hire eligibility
- Above average employer paid premium coverage
- 12 weeks Helix Paid Parental Leave option
- 401(k) with employer matching of up to 3% and 100% Vesting on the Date of Hire
- Comprehensive Well-Being Benefits
- Paid Time Off
What To Expect During Your Onboarding Week:
We want to make sure your first week is spent learning the foundations. You will be invited to live orientation sessions and spend time with your hiring manager developing your individual roadmap to success. This experience will include sessions that cover your benefits, security & privacy training, an introduction to the OKR framework used at Helix and our communication tools and norms.
What To Expect During Your First 90 days:
Days 1–30: Building the Foundation
Your journey begins with comprehensive onboarding covering safety protocols, regulatory compliance, privacy requirements, and laboratory procedures. You'll immerse yourself in our company culture, connect with your new team, and learn our core systems and values.
Through hands-on training and mentorship, you'll become proficient in the specimen accessioning and processing workflows. You'll gain experience with various specimen types, learn to maintain lab organization using 5S methodology, understand critical quality control measures, and develop an understanding of the clinical laboratory operations. Your training will include proper biohazardous waste handling procedures and accessioning responsibilities to build your skills progressively.
By Day 30, you'll achieve: Accessioning Competency – Level 1 and Biohazardous Waste Handling Competency and be ready to contribute to the laboratory operations.
Days 31–60: Growing Your Skills
As you progress, you'll develop essential clinical laboratory skills, deepen your understanding of HIPAA requirements, CAP and CLIA regulations, have a broader understanding of sample problem resolution, and understand key KPIs that drive the department’s performance.
Your expanding training will include managing uncertainty while ensuring accurate data entry while maintaining specimen integrity. You'll learn to identify and flag specimen issues such as missing information, incorrect sample types, lost samples while escalating them appropriately to senior staff and providing thorough documentation in our quality management system tools, Veeva and Jira. Additionally, you’ll begin supporting automated plating activities by organizing and preparing samples for licensed operators.
By Day 60, you’ll achieve: Accessioning Competency - Level 3 and contribute more actively to team workflows. Your additional scope will include exposure to system tools such as Veeva, Jira, and Labbit. Lastly, you’ll contribute to the KPIs
Days 61–90: Taking Ownership
In this final phase, you'll demonstrate end-to-end understanding of all pre-analytical processes, perform all core duties with high accuracy, gain exposure to process improvement initiatives, begin SOP revision training, and work collaboratively with the laboratory operations and customer support teams.
By Day 90, you’ll begin putting your learning together by achieving Accessioning Competency Level 4, contributing more extensively to the sample preparation for plating processes, working cohesively with department counterparts (quality, laboratory operations, and customer support), and collaborate towards process improvement initiatives.
Helix is proud to be an equal opportunity employer, and committed to providing employment opportunities regardless of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding, age, sexual orientation, military or veteran status, or any other protected classification, in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws.
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Req ID: R718