diff --git a/tools/buildman/builder.py b/tools/buildman/builder.py
index 236e0617ac..b0ea57ebb4 100644
--- a/tools/buildman/builder.py
+++ b/tools/buildman/builder.py
@@ -95,8 +95,9 @@ u-boot/             source directory
 # Possible build outcomes
 OUTCOME_OK, OUTCOME_WARNING, OUTCOME_ERROR, OUTCOME_UNKNOWN = range(4)
 
-# Translate a commit subject into a valid filename
-trans_valid_chars = string.maketrans("/: ", "---")
+# Translate a commit subject into a valid filename (and handle unicode)
+trans_valid_chars = string.maketrans('/: ', '---')
+trans_valid_chars = trans_valid_chars.decode('latin-1')
 
 BASE_CONFIG_FILENAMES = [
     'u-boot.cfg', 'u-boot-spl.cfg', 'u-boot-tpl.cfg'