The government is the union, at a base level, and then you go from there. If your government offers nothing then even a union will only bring you up so much. Both are good even without the other, but the government actually working for the people and making hard laws is the best option if you had to pick. It’s also much more difficult to do considering most people are dumb as hell, so unions help give them a more local opportunity to understand that working together is a good idea.