My dad and uncle worked for the same company, each for 30-40 years. My dad was regular salary, my uncle was union, and both had similar engineering degrees making similar money (lived about a mile from each other with similar lifestyles). Every few years, my uncle would be out of work because his union would strike, and money would dry up in the process when the paychecks would stop. He ended up losing his job when the company shipped he jobs elsewhere because dealing with the union got old.
Unions can be great, just make sure yours is one of those. A bad union can make things worse.