(1) In this Act -

"authorised officer" means a person appointed by the Minister to be an authorised officer for the purposes of this Act;

"contract of employment" means: (a) a contract of service or of apprenticeship, and (b) any other contract whereby an individual agrees with another person, who is carrying on the business of an employment agency within the meaning of the Employment Agency Act 1971 (No. 27 of 1971), and is acting in the course of that business, to do or perform personally any work or service for a third person (whether or not the third person is a party to the contract), whether the contact is express or implied and, if express, whether it is oral or in writing;

"employee" means a person who has entered into or works under (or, in the case of a contract which has been terminated, worked under) a contract of employment with an employer, whether the contract is for manual labour, clerical work or otherwise, is express or implied, oral or in writing;