Australia is on the cusp of a new industrial revolution that could see more than 5 million jobs disappear over the next 10-15 years – and the insurance industry will not be immune.

A report from the Committee for the Economic Development of Australia warns technological advances may lead to almost 40% of current jobs being eliminated.

“It was little over a century ago that the majority of Australians worked in the agriculture sector, yet today it employs only a tiny fraction of the labour market,” the report says.

“After manufacturing took over as a major employer, it too was disrupted by changes to the global marketplace and now employs a far smaller portion of the workforce.

“In contrast, the information and telecommunication advances detailed in this report are likely to do exactly that to a range of activities associated with traditional white-collar activity.”

Affected jobs vary from “telemarketers to insurance underwriters, to radiologists”.

Computerisation and automation will make individuals far more productive and significantly reduce the demand for many types of workers, the report says.

New jobs and industries will emerge, but the nation will be left behind unless it plans ahead and invests in the right areas.