The CJEU upholds (most of) the Minimum Wage Directive: a cautious celebration for social Europe

Abstract In November 2025 the CJEU delivered the much-anticipated case on the validity of the Adequate Minimum Wage Directive 2022/2041. In it, the CJEU confirmed the validity of most of the Directive, declaring that only some sections had been adopted outside EU competence. These had to be removed from the Directive. This article studies the argumentation of both the Advocate General and the CJEU in the case and it offers a reflection of what this case entails for the future of the Directive and social Europe.