The Australian Education Union has approximately 180,000 members nationally in schools, early childhood education centres, Corrections Education, Adult Migrant Education Services, and TAFE institutes. The AEU campaigns and lobbies for increased funding for public TAFE institutes, improved industrial and professional conditions for TAFE teachers and improvements in vocational education for all TAFE students.

TAFE is a significant part of the Australian education system. Almost 1.3 million students are enrolled in 58 Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institutes around the country. Hundreds of TAFE campuses are located across metropolitan, regional and remote Australia. TAFE works with local industry, communities and other education sectors. More students go to TAFE than to universities. TAFE offers a wide range of courses across most industry areas, with pathways between TAFE and schools, universities and workplaces a key focus of TAFE teachers' work. Students are at the centre of TAFE, and TAFE teachers are highly skilled professionals working with a diverse range of students, in classrooms, workplaces, online and in the community. TAFE students report high levels of satisfaction with the study they undertake at TAFE institutes.