Everyone who currently has a job, that isn't at imminent risk of losing that job, is in a position of power against a company that needs labor.

I'm certainly not widely known in the industry. I don't have any public projects/repos. I've been doing this for almost 20 years, so I do have a pretty extensive resume. But I didn't have extensive resume when I was starting out in the early 2000s just after the internet bubble burst and times were relatively rough in the industry. And I wouldn't have done 4-5 interviews or homework projects even then.

We don't need to accept this kind of treatment from potential employers.