Hey Mate. I have been a lab tech/scientist for over 10 years so can probably help a bit.
Lab assistants may not get paid too well, so if you do follow this path , try to upgrade to Tech ASAP. Techs in the public service generally get paid heaps more than those from private companies.
Heres one job I found recently.
TB lab jobA tech starting salary of $47K is good ,especially considering it can go to $63K. Private companies are lucky to make $50K tops. The job security is very good in govt labs ( almost recession proof) . I work in a research lab, so it has to submit grants and fund itself. Consequently I am on yearly contracts, which isnt too great. Therefore I would tend to avoid these labs. The CSIRO is the exception to this as it is a research lab, but has such good funding that people can get permanent jobs ( I am pretty sure of this). In fact, word in the industry says the CSIRO is a good place to work all round.
Some labs are highly automated and can be very boring ( just feed a machine and get results) , while some labs have great variety and let you do heaps of different things ( field work etc). At least in the CSIRO you can transfer around if you get bored.
Lab work tends to have a high percentage of women as employees. This can be good and bad.
Eg. There are stacks of girls to meet ( I met my lovely wife at my current lab). Then again working with too many girls can be shite as well.
It wont make you rich, but isnt a bad career path I guess. There seems to be a limit to what you can do once you become a tech. You often do exactly the same as a scientist, but wont get the recognition or money, which kinda sucks. That may be worth bearing in mind.
All the best with it. Give us a yell if theres anything I can help with.