Unifor National President Jerry Dias says the federal government should take a page out of Trump’s playbook on formulating a national auto strategy.

“As crazy as he is…he’s showing government can play a role in industry,” he said in an interview on BNN.

“He’s showing, by his actions, that governments can participate in the economics of a nation. So the message to Canada is that we really do need a formal auto strategy.”

The U.S. President-elect has been threatening to slap international automakers with a “big border tax” for selling vehicles in the country that have been assembled outside the U.S.

Trump’s approach seems to be working. General Motors is the latest of the Detroit Three automakers to announce an additional US$1 billion in investment in U.S. manufacturing and plans to shift axle production from Mexico to the U.S. The company says the move will create and retain a combined 1,500 jobs stateside.

Earlier this month, Ford cancelled plans for a new US$1.6 billion plant in Mexico, in an effort to “safeguard” about 3,500 American jobs.

Concerns are mounting, though, that Trump’s efforts could come at a cost to Canada’s auto industry, as companies pull investment dollars away to put them to work south of the border.

Dias is brushing off those fears. “I view it as an opportunity for us to right the ship. I view it as an opportunity for us to talk to the United States, come together for a joint strategy on trade and move ahead”

Despite the successful 2016 contract agreements reached between the union and the Detroit Three, Dias says that’s just a start. He wants the federal and provincial governments to not only come to the table to talk short-term investments, but take a long-term view to strategy.

“We ought not to be afraid of the school yard bully. We should be meeting, we should be planning what our objectives are,” he said, “I expect we’re in a very good position to do that.