| Office: | 15th President of the Brotherhood of Painters and Decorators of America |
| Term Start: | 1964 |
| Term End: | 1984 |
| Predecessor: | Lawrence M. Raftery |
| Successor: | William A. Duval |
| Birth Name: | Sylvester Frank Raftery |
| Birth Date: | 30 November 1918 |
| Birth Place: | St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Father: | Lawrence M. Raftery |
| Profession: | Labor union leader |
| Allegiance: | United States |
| Branch: | United States Navy |
| Unit: | Seabee |
| Battles: | World War II |
Sylvester Frank "Bud" Raftery (November 30, 1918 - November 20, 1986) was an American labor union leader.
Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Raftery was the son of Lawrence M. Raftery. He became a sign painter at the age of 16, and joined the Brotherhood of Painters, Decorators and Paperhangers of America (BPDPA), in which his father was also active.[1]
Raftery served with the Seebees in the Pacific during World War II. In the early 1950s, his father became president of the BPDPA, and he appointed Bud as its full-time director of jurisdiction. In 1964, he succeeded his father as union president.
As leader of the union, Raftery moved its headquarters to Washington D.C. He also created a national pension fund for painters, and set up a health and safety department in the union. He also served as a vice-president of the AFL-CIO. However, his leadership of the union was unpopular with rank-and-file members in many larger cities.[2]
Raftery retired in 1984 due to poor health. He died two years later.