H1 related urgent

[pgujj1]

Hi all,
I came to US on F1 student visa for Masters. After completion i had my OPT(from sep/1/2007 to sep/2/2008). My employer applied for H1 in april/08 and i got approved. So currently my status is H1 starting from Oct/1/2008.

Iam a consultant (Oracle PL/SQL developer) & i was on the project for a few months(from june/08 to august/08). Since august, iam on bench period and not getting paid by my employer & currently looking for a project!!!

My questions are;
1) How long can i stay like this on the H1 visa without getting paid or untill i get into a project; even though iam employed by the company and, are there any restrictions?
2) Will it cause any problem in future?
3) Also i have to go for the H1 stamping; any guidelines on tht?

Thanks

[raghuram]

1. You must get paid all the time, on project or bench.
2. Yes, a problem.