VxYx
if you don't make CAP, what happens?
As Lead says if the company has built your roster = Blindline, then don't worry about CAP, you're paid as if you'd achieved it (aka "pay protected").
If you are building your roster = Trip line = then you must reach a specified monthly minimum by end of Stage 2. Used to be CAP - 15 hrs on Longhaul, (not sure where it is this week with the various alleviations that are in play, CAP -10?). If you don't get above the minimum then your line is "wiped" of trips ( hence this minimum level is known as "wiping level") and you become a Blindline holder (rostered by company, pay is protected).
If you are successful in being above wiping level but are still below CAP after Stage 2 then:
1. If you are short of CAP
with enough available hours in the bank from previous months to cover the shortfall then sufficient banked hours are withdrawn to get you up to CAP......but see warning 1 below.
2. If you are below CAP with insufficient hours in the bank to get back to CAP you are a "Nett Low Bidder"(NLBer)
This is generally not regarded as a "good thing" and life now gets very complex ...one of several things may happen:
If you are very close to CAP you
may simply get away with roster being left intact and pay being docked, as Lead described.
OTOH if it's a sizeable shortfall the company will add work to your line, or use a combination of removing and adding of trips to get you nearer to CAP ( that might mean ending up above CAP).
(A very belated history note: This whole NLBer d..... dance was brought in about 10 years ago to stop people consistently bidding below CAP, month after month. The compensation was the introduction of the Aspirational Part Time contracts).
Warning 1: Nowadays in any event the company can put extra work on your line at the final stage of roster build if you've left a nice gap (regardless of whether you've made CAP or not )...
and
Warning 2: Bidline is going in perhaps less than two years, so there's no point in getting too hung up on the details.