that will connect our customers with smart systems, control systems for optimal performance, and conserve critical resources by increasing operability, efficiency and safety.
Products representing a majority of our sales are subject to regulatory standards and code enforcement, which typically require that these products meet stringent performance criteria. We have consistently advocated for the development and enforcement of such plumbing codes. We are focused on maintaining stringent quality control and testing procedures at each of our manufacturing facilities in order to manufacture products in compliance with code requirements and take advantage of the resulting demand for compliant products. We believe that product development, product testing capability and investment in plant and equipment needed to manufacture products in compliance with code requirements, represent a competitive advantage for us.
COVID-19 Pandemic
The unprecedented global COVID-19 pandemic presents significant risks to our company, and we are not able to fully evaluate or forecast the impact on our business at the current time. Our revenues for the third quarter ended September 27, 2020 were adversely impacted as a result COVID-19. Demand for our products decreased as compared to the same period in 2019 as the pandemic continued and various governmental measures were imposed to combat the spread of the virus. Third quarter sales improved when compared to the second quarter of 2020. However, as the third quarter progressed, we noted sequential monthly declines in our order and sales rates as some restocking orders early in the quarter did not repeat. The exact timing and pace of the recovery remain uncertain and are impacted by certain markets which are now experiencing a resurgence of COVID-19 cases. Future sales expansion or contraction is dependent on the duration and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, including, the time it takes for normal economic and operating conditions to resume, easing of the construction lending markets, improvements in overall investments and capital spending in building services construction markets, additional governmental actions that may be taken, and numerous other uncertainties, including the time to develop an effective vaccine or therapeutic treatments.
Our operations in the fourth quarter are expected to continue to be negatively impacted by COVID-19. Currently, we estimate fourth quarter sales may decline by 4% to 8% compared to prior year. We continue to be concerned about the far reaching impacts of the pandemic on our business, operations, and financial results and conditions, directly and indirectly, including, without limitation, impacts on the health of our employees, manufacturing capabilities, supply chain, distribution networks, sales opportunities, customer and consumer behaviors, and on the overall economy. The scope and nature of these potential impacts are pervasive, many are beyond our control, continue to evolve and their outcomes are uncertain.
Many of our products qualify as “essential products” under local, state, and national guidelines and orders. We remain focused on protecting the health and safety of our employees and the communities in which we operate while maintaining the continuity of our business operations. The Company created a COVID-19 Task Force to develop and implement a coordinated response to protect our employees while maintaining production capabilities, and we have implemented social distancing guidelines and temperature monitoring, provided personal protective equipment, established a COVID-19 website for employees, which includes the latest CDC and other government protocols, and promoted work-from-home where practical. We are in communication with both customers and suppliers, we established a COVID-19 customer hotline in the US to support critical infrastructure projects, and we worked with our suppliers to ensure they could obtain the “essential” product classification from various government organizations.
In response to the business impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, we undertook several cost management actions in order to reduce costs, including merit deferrals, salary and incentive reductions, furloughs, reduced discretionary spending, factory overhead cost reductions, renegotiated material costs and reductions-in-force and other exit activities initiated in the second and third quarters of 2020. We also implemented various measures to conserve cash. In addition to the cost actions noted above, we temporarily suspended our stock repurchase program during the second quarter, which was reinstated on June 29, 2020, maintained a flat dividend rate, and deferred employer payroll tax payments as permitted under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”). We have also implemented additional procedures to manage risks related to our working capital, specifically the collectability of our trade accounts receivable, by monitoring the financial stability, credit rating, payment terms and credit limits of our credit customers.
Due to the above circumstances and as described generally in this Form 10-Q, the Company’s results of operations for the third quarter and nine months ended September 27, 2020 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the full fiscal year. Management cannot predict the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company’s sales,