By that logic, universities are a big contributor to ongoing economic inequality. You spend 2-4 years (at least, more if you want a post-grad) not earning any money, and in fact paying money to get the credentials needed to eventually become gainfully employed.

Internships & apprenticeships serve the same educational function of universities, except you don't have to pay money to get that experience.

In order to be consistent, either we force universities to pay its students, or at the very least encourage companies to start charging interns for the privilege of an internship. Neither option is reasonable.