Yes, under certain circumstances there is a possibility to pay employees more in Horizon Europe projects, it is called the project-based remuneration.

For programmes with standard rules for supplementary payments: The personnel costs may also include supplementary payments for personnel assigned to the action (including payments on the basis of supplementary contracts regardless of their nature), if:

• it is part of the beneficiary’s usual remuneration practices and is paid in a consistent manner whenever the same kind of work or expertise is required
• the criteria used to calculate the supplementary payments are objective and generally applied by the beneficiary, regardless of the source of funding used.]

For programmes with project-based supplementary payments: For personnel which receives supplementary payments for work in projects (project-based remuneration), the personnel costs must be calculated at a rate which:

• corresponds to the actual remuneration costs paid by the beneficiary for the time worked by the person in the action over the reporting period
• does not exceed the remuneration costs paid by the beneficiary for work in similar projects funded by national schemes (‘national projects reference’)
• is defined based on objective criteria allowing to determine the amount to which the person is entitled and
• reflects the usual practice of the beneficiary to pay consistently bonuses or supplementary payments for work in projects funded by national schemes.

The national projects reference is the remuneration defined in national law, collective labour agreement or written internal rules of the beneficiary applicable to work in projects funded by national schemes.

If there is no such national law, collective labour agreement or written internal rules or if the project-based remuneration is not based on objective criteria, the national project reference will be the average remuneration of the person in the last full calendar year covered by the reporting period, excluding remuneration paid for work in EU actions.]

Source: AMGA Horizon Europe General > Article 6.2.A.1 Employees A.1 Employees