diff --git a/oslo_log/handlers.py b/oslo_log/handlers.py
index 320a1e2..347384f 100644
--- a/oslo_log/handlers.py
+++ b/oslo_log/handlers.py
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ try:
     import syslog
 except ImportError:
     syslog = None
+from oslo_utils import encodeutils
 
 
 NullHandler = logging.NullHandler
@@ -52,9 +53,11 @@ if syslog is not None:
             syslog.openlog(binary_name, 0, facility)
 
         def emit(self, record):
-            syslog.syslog(self.severity_map.get(record.levelname,
-                                                syslog.LOG_DEBUG),
-                          self.format(record))
+            priority = self.severity_map.get(record.levelname,
+                                             syslog.LOG_DEBUG)
+            message = encodeutils.safe_encode(self.format(record))
+
+            syslog.syslog(priority, message)
 
 
 class ColorHandler(logging.StreamHandler):
diff --git a/oslo_log/tests/unit/test_log.py b/oslo_log/tests/unit/test_log.py
index e1590ec..1923394 100644
--- a/oslo_log/tests/unit/test_log.py
+++ b/oslo_log/tests/unit/test_log.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+# -*- coding: utf-8 -*-
+
 # Copyright (c) 2011 United States Government as represented by the
 # Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
 # All Rights Reserved.
@@ -259,6 +261,17 @@ class OSSysLogHandlerTestCase(BaseTestCase):
                           log._find_facility,
                           "fougere")
 
+    def test_syslog(self):
+        msg_unicode = u"Benoît Knecht & François Deppierraz login failure"
+        msg_utf8 = msg_unicode.encode('utf-8')
+
+        handler = handlers.OSSysLogHandler()
+        syslog.syslog = mock.Mock()
+        handler.emit(
+            logging.LogRecord("name", logging.INFO, "path", 123,
+                              msg_unicode, None, None))
+        syslog.syslog.assert_called_once_with(syslog.LOG_INFO, msg_utf8)
+
 
 class LogLevelTestCase(BaseTestCase):
     def setUp(self):