HUNDREDS of workers wanted: new Sydney Zoo needs jobs filled

PERTH, AUSTRALIA – DECEMBER 30: Maria Sakkari and Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece pose with a koala at Caversham Wildlife Centre during day two of the 2019 Hopman Cup at RAC Arena on December 30, 2018 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Will Russell/Getty Images)

The new Sydney Zoo, set to open in western Sydney in the second half of this year, has put the call out to fill 150 positions in a variety of sectors.

The organisation is searching for job candidates in hospitality, maintenance, retail and administration, as well as the animal-related fields in sciences and zoology.

A careers fair will be Tuesday evening for those interested in zoology and life sciences roles at the Novotel West HQ in Rooty Hill in western Sydney.

A similar event will be held in April for jobs in hospitality.

Sydney Zoo managing director Jake Burgess said the company wanted to champion diversity in its workforce and meet a target of 10 per cent Indigenous employment it set with non-profit organisation Muru Muttigar.

“Sydney Zoo is proud of the projected growth we will offer the western Sydney economy. We anticipate these roles to be filled by a mix of local and greater Sydney talent,” he said.

Burgess and his father John, who founded Sydney Aquarium, are behind the project, which will see a cage-free zoo open at Bungaribee, 5km west of Blacktown in western Sydney.

The organisation, which claims to be the first new zoo to be built in Sydney in more than 100 years, settled out-of-court an intellectual property case with its eastern Sydney rival Taronga Zoo after the incumbent complained that the “Sydney Zoo” name would be confusing for overseas visitors.

Artist’s impression of the tigers section at the Sydney Zoo. (Image: Sydney Zoo)

The settlement saw Sydney Zoo retain the name but agree to avoid using imagery, like the giraffe and the Sydney Harbour Bridge, that’s associated with Taronga.

Sydney Zoo claims it will attract up to a million visitors and generate approximately $45 million each year in economic activity to the state.

It has already employed 160 full-time workers during the construction phase.

Registrations for the jobs fair on Tuesday night are open here.

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