Matt Padbury, President of local 1883 & Vestal Town Board Member, started his career as a laborer in refuse and grounds for the Town of Union before moving to the highway garage in Broome County, where he currently serves as an Equipment Service Supervisor. His path into the automotive and mechanical field began early in life, driven by a long-standing interest in how things work.
After attending BOCES for auto technician training, he transitioned into a mechanic role and spent approximately 12 years working his way up from an entry-level mechanic position. Throughout his career, he has witnessed major changes in the industry. “One of the biggest challenges today is adapting from old-school technology to modern diagnostic procedures. It’s interesting to see the evolution of the industry. You almost need to be a computer scientist now.”
His progression into supervision reflected a desire to support others and lead collaboratively. “I wanted to be in a position as a leader where we run things as a team. My job is to get workers the resources they need to be successful.”
Union involvement has always been important to Matt. Growing up in a union family, he saw firsthand the value of organized labor. His father was a lifelong CSEA member. Matt became active in the union in 2010 and was elected Vice President in 2012. “The old-school union thinking was that you had to be in the union a decade or more before you could have a voice. I never believed that.” He served three terms representing the blue-collar side before moving into management. In 2023, he was asked to run for President of Local 1883. His philosophy toward union involvement is rooted in action and participation. “If it isn’t working, get involved and make it better. Don’t just complain.”
Carly, Matt, Jennifer, Carter Padbury
During the mid-2010s, he noticed many workers were hesitant to become involved in politics. Through his union experience, he learned the importance of speaking up and advocating for working people. “I saw politicians demonize union members and government workers. I went as far as I could on the union side, and I thought the next progression was to get involved politically. ”Believing that “all politics is local,” he decided to run for Town Board to bring his pro-worker values and experience into local government. “I don’t have a college education, but I’ve always hung my hat on experience. I thought it was important to start at the local level because that’s where you can help the most people.”
Matt also believes more union members and working people should consider running for office. “To me, the message of unions is not just bringing ourselves up. It’s bringing everybody up, not just one portion of society.”
Running for office became both a personal and educational experience for his family and community. His daughter, Carly, who was 13 years old at the time, played a major role in the campaign. “My daughter knocked on 90% of the doors with me.” Together with his campaign team, they knocked on more than 3,000 doors, with over 1,100 personally visited by Matt and his daughter.
The experience opened his eyes to how disconnected many people are from local government and how little they know about the political process. “People don’t realize the educational opportunity that comes from running for office. You learn about current events, policies, and how government works. There’s also a lot of misinformation out there.”
He was also surprised by the financial barriers to local campaigns. “It costs about $10,000 to run for a part-time Town Board seat. That probably knocks a lot of good candidates out of the process.”
He soon took office after winning his election in November 2025 to fill a vacancy.
Serving on the Town Board has given him a new perspective on government operations. “It’s a new challenge and a new learning experience. I worked in government my whole life, and now I’m seeing why decisions are made from the other side.”
Reflecting on both his union and political experiences, he says one of his biggest early mistakes was trying to do everything himself. “I didn’t delegate enough or ask for help. You need a core team of people who are going to support you.” He encourages union members to become active participants in their organizations and in their communities. “Join your union. Be an active member. Show up to meetings, volunteer, speak your voice, learn, and get involved.”
Matt believes now is a critical time for union members to step forward, get involved, and run for elected office. He says working families need a stronger voice in government and public service. “It’s a good time for union members to get involved around issues that impact working people. For too long, it’s been a struggle to get the pro-worker message out. Now is the time for working-people to step up, speak out, and make their voices heard.”