I HATE the term "PhD student" because people throw it into one pot with 1st year http://B.Sc  students and forget the two degrees that we acquired before our PhD.

Also, we work normal hours and get a salary, so I always considered it an entry level job
#phdchat

To add to this point:

So people argue that PhD candidates still don't know what they are doing.

It's the same in every entry level job.

Companies invest a lot of money in teaching new staff and harvest the fruits of that later. But in the beginning they lose money.